


Achieving Love

by Klawtwo



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Video Game World, How Do I Tag, M/M, My First Fanfic, Not Beta Read, On Hiatus, Please Don't Kill Me, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:54:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 30,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26864719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Klawtwo/pseuds/Klawtwo
Summary: This is my first public fanfiction, and it's one hell of a slow-burn (sorry, I'm still working on not being overly wordy, but I can't help but build the world y'know?) The basic concept is our lovely minecraft youtubers get thrown into their favourite game.  What could go wrong?  Oh, besides the fact that it's permanently in hardcore mode and AI actually have a few braincells.  Not to mention the randomized spawn location.Besides, all they had to do was either:1. Obtain every achievement besides "Free the End"Or2. Beat the game.How hard could it actually be?I was actually heavily inspired by goatgoatwasfound's work titled "Free the Game, Beat the End" so I decided to run with a similar concept (primarily just them getting stuck in the game, though, but I still feel like they deserve a heavy shout out.)I have a lot planned for this story, and each chapter should be focused around two achievements that I want them to accomplish (mostly to keep pacing and not get stuck with them going nowhere.) Some bigger achievements/ideas will have their own chapter as well.I'll add more tags as the story progresses.
Relationships: Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 38
Kudos: 223





	1. Hello World

**Author's Note:**

> This is actually somewhat inspired by another work that user goatgoatwasfound made, titled “Free the Game, Beat the End”! It was such a cool concept and I had such a blast reading what was currently done that it inspired me to try my own kind of work based around the idea of Minecraft being like real life (mind you, I am aware this is a concept many works share, but this particular work truly inspired me to dig into it myself.) I’m not planning on doing anything similar to it other than the “scaled up map, hardcore mode, sucked into Minecraft” kind of thing, since it’s not my place to write their story (would love to see their future chapters though, I highly recommend that story guys. Go check it out!) Also note that I ship Dream and George’s Minecraft personas, but not as real people (that’s kind of creepy.) If either party decides to change their stance on “we’re cool with being shipped” then I’ll take this down. Fingers crossed it all goes smoothly though :D.
> 
> I warn you now that this is my first piece (though low-key I have some that I just haven’t published. They’re for different fandoms though- and remain unfinished.) Please don’t murder me. I’ll try not to be as wordy and slow-burning as I usually am. If this does well I’ll probably add a sequel or one-shots or something. I’ll update this when I find time (Fall is prime time to apply for scholarships and colleges and stuff, so I’m kind of busy, but I’ll try my best to update when I can. Will try not to die off like most pieces, I swear-.)
> 
> Finally, I hope y'all have a wonderful week! Even if you’re just scrolling past this :D.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dull world with an even duller beginning.  
> Hello, World.

He blinked, his mind already trying to process a multitude of things at once. Clutching his stomach, he fell to the ground as nausea overtook his senses, flipping the dull yellow world into one of spinning darkness. After ten minutes of uncoordinated thoughts, he was finally able to open his eyes again without being thrust into a migraine. The first objects of note were the strange GUIs that floated around his peripheral vision. Health, hunger, and a hotbar. His eyes rapidly focused and unfocused, struggling to remove the foreign things from his vision. It took another moment before he was able to properly ignore his self-assigned stats and instead take in the world around him.

The spawn in this world was randomized in order to prevent people from killing others the moment they entered this world. It was just his luck that he ended up trapped in a barren desert biome with no end in sight. He sighed, looking back at the objects invading his vision in an attempt to figure this out. Joining the game had been a willing choice. An easy one. All of his friends had logged in hours earlier, but he had stayed behind to ensure that everything was properly connected. Or that’s what he told himself at least. In reality, he was terrified.

Days ago it was reported that people who logged into the popular game “Minecraft” would be thrust into the virtual world, abandoning their physical form for their in-game characters (though they retained human characteristics and didn’t adapt into block-people.) Immediately thousands of people jumped at the chance to log in before servers were closed for maintenance, desperate to escape their real life for one that sounded much more “fun” and “appealing.” It only took the first few deaths for people to realize the sheer danger the game held.

Unable to log out and trapped in an expansive and randomly generated world, thousands of people from all ages died within days. It was pandemonium. Unable to find out what caused the issue, the developers decided to try and find how to fix the issue rather than reverse it. Their deduction? Beat the game, (or) get every achievement aside from “The End.” To professional Minecraft players this seemed like a menial task, one that shouldn’t take more than a few days at most, especially with the ability to avoid the End fight all together just by tediously going through the other tasks that exist. Yet many downplayed the severity of it. Without contact to the players trapped inside the cubic world, developers and data-miners struggled for weeks to find out why nobody had completed the challenges yet. This uncovered the true nature of the game.

Hardcore mode was permanently enabled, unable to be changed despite sleepless efforts (an attempt to allow respawning and stop the endless death messages that flooded the website through an unknown and indecipherable source.) The inside was much larger than a normal Minecraft world, making each biome thousands of blocks larger than they should be. Finally, NPC AI had been drastically altered. This meant that mobs and creatures acted independently, as if they had the mind of a player. This shocking realization led to Mojang developers practically begging any skilled minecrafter who was not already stuck in the game to head in and help out the countless who went in unprepared or without warning.

One of these players was Dream. Popular on youtube for his creative ideas and expertise at speed-running Minecraft, he was a prime option for what Mojang had in mind. At first he was hesitant, turning to his friends for advice and help with the request. The response was immediate. Straddled with the burden of possibly being able to beat the game and free the trapped souls stuck in the game, Dream agreed to enter the simulation; an event that led to friends such as Sapnap, GeorgeNotFound, BadBoyHalo (who requested to take Skeppy as well,) and other popular youtubers to request to join in order to feel a similar sense of importance.

With thousands of expectant eyes, it was hard to refuse. You’d be a bad guy if you had the chance to save millions of lives and then decided you didn’t want to just to save your own skin. Especially if you were an expert at the game. Especially if you didn’t even attempt to request to join. Soon, it seemed like the entire Minecraft community had agreed to enter the game (done through a series of private servers linked to the main database that were quickly closed off once the individuals joined, in order to prevent accidental transportation of non-competitive and unwilling players. It had become a trend on popular apps for people to record themselves “joining Minecraft” as a scare prank, requiring a heavier monetization of the game to ensure nothing got out of control or actually occurred.)

Snapping out of his memories, he took in his surroundings once more. A blazing sun scorched his skin, making him wonder if it was still possible to be sunburned despite the effect not existing in the game. He guessed only time would tell. The chat blared in the bottom left of his vision, a reminder that he could contact others in the world if he was within their proximity and learned how its mechanics worked. He should also be able to whisper to someone if he knew their username.

He looked up. “GeorgeNotFound” floated precariously above his head. With a heavy sigh, he glanced at the chat once more before deciding he would to try and figure out how it worked later. He needed to contact his friends. To contact Dream. But first, he needed to find a tree in order to survive. With the sun glaring down, signaling mid-day, George began his trek through the desert in hopes of finding another biome soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter! These notes will be at the top from now on, but since the first "chapter" technically had its notes done in the description and stuff, I just put this at the bottom. I would appreciate feedback and just comments in general :D. I'm still super new to this, and trying to find out how to format things is messing with my head, so please be patient with me as I try and adapt to everything-.


	2. Taking Inventory + Getting Wood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope, like an oasis in the desert, is hard to find unless you're truly dedicated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have decided to name chapters after the achievements I want to occur in this section of the story (mostly to help it flow better as well as to make it kind of quirky. I don’t know, it sounded fun.) Chapters are likely to go by 2 achievements (mostly to keep myself sane and not have 111 chapters with some being as simple as “bake bread”-) with more important "achievements" (some basic achievements might have an entire chapter if I decide it's perfect for an adorable fluff break-) have their own chapter(s). I hope y'all enjoy! Feedback would be appreciated!
> 
> I’ve also decided that George and them are going to be going for the achievements as they go (most are super easy, and even if they can’t complete them all then they always have “free the end” as a last resort. I’ll try to put this information somewhere in a chapter, but currently it’s here because I don’t want to go back and edit Chapter 1 out of laziness. Plus I’m too wordy. Sorry to disappoint-. Accept this or else I have to struggle to find motivation/structure for the story :sob:.)
> 
> I will say, I do all of my writing and editing on Google Docs before moving it to here. Was kind of disappointed I couldn't use coloured text/highlights to make the "chat" appear like it was from in-game (via dark gray highlight with white text overlay and green text on achievements) but it's okay! Chapter 3 is also ready for publication so be on the lookout for that tomorrow :D
> 
> There might be a few days this week where I update daily, but that depends on how well my motivation holds out (not to mention my project due dates are collapsing on me so I might have to take a short break.) Currently I’m trying to write as much as I can while I’m free in order to also be able to post while I’m too busy to write, so hopefully that goes smoothly. I will try my best to keep them in-character, but there might be instances where I mess up. I’m still human (shocking, I’m aware.) Hopefully I can improve with time! Also I deeply appreciate all your guys comments on Chapter 1, they really motivate me to keep updating :D!

Three hunger. Five hearts. These stats blared at the bottom of George’s vision like a haunting reminder of his current predicament. The night had been hellish. He had forced himself into a small sandstone chamber surrounded by walls of sand and waited for it to pass, flinching each time he heard the groan of a zombie or rattling of a skeleton as they shuffled past his hiding place. When he noticed how low his hunger was, he decided to leave slightly earlier than he would have liked. It almost caused his death. Outrunning all but a single skeleton’ shot (which temporarily hurt beyond belief,) he had finally taken the chance to rest once the sun burned bright enough to smite his nightly foes for him. 

Now here he was, still stranded in the desert and lost without the ability to sprint. All hope was not lost, however. Smoke bellowed in the nearby distance, giving him hope. Perhaps there was a village nearby. His hunger dropped to a meager 1 and ½ before he set his sights on his personal oasis. Sandstone structures towered over the deserted land, casting harsh shadows against the grain. George smiled. Surely a village would have resources necessary to temporarily survive. At least until he was able to find a new biome. 

His approach was slow and delicate, stomach already protesting with hunger pains. Finally arriving at the village, he was quickly surrounded by the nomads that inhabited the place. It didn’t take long for them to notice his predicament. Several villagers retreated to their homes in order to gather supplies for the foreign wanderer, hoping hospitality would grant them a new ally and tales of distant lands. George, already nervous from the mass attention being given to him, soon finds himself with a handful of carrots and raw potatoes which oddly go straight to empty space. Still grateful, he looks towards the peering eyes, but finds himself unable to speak. Too hungry, he supposed. He shall just thank them afterwards. After he finds out how his inventory works, at least.

His hunger dangerously low, George desperately spent the next few minutes trying to “open” his “inventory.” Through a mixture of skill and luck, he managed to trigger his mind in a way that would allow his inventory to take over his vision (a skill he’d have to get use to later.)

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Taking Inventory]

Relief flooded him as he quickly moved the food to his hotbar. He devoured the food in mere seconds, causing a round of applause to erupt around him at the “amusing trick.” A light blush dusted his cheeks as self conscious gripped him once more, now that he was out of danger of starving to death. He curiously glanced at the NPCs he well knew from behind a screen. In person, they seemed a lot taller then he would like to admit.

“H-hello,” George’s stuttering voice causes gasps to erupt from the crowd, before they begin clapping and cheering once more. Confusion takes a hold of him as he’s escorted to the center of the village. The nomads stare expectantly. George stares back. Finally succumbing to the awkward tension, he continues with a sheepish grin, “is there something I can do for you all? I’m very appreciative of the food, but I don’t really have anything to offer in exchange.”

The villagers muttered indecipherably among themselves (or at least in a language George did not comprehend) before one stepped forward. Looking no different from his townsmen, he gestured impatiently towards a “block.” George gave it a curious glance. A terracotta piece (though he wasn’t too sure what colour it was due to the possibility of it being something he was blind to, he assumed it was some shade of orange or yellow.) When the villager noticed his confusion, it began to rapidly smack the block before pointing back to him.

“You...want me to mine it?” George ask in a shy yet bewildered tone. This seemed to be the request, as soon the villager was rapidly shaking his head in a “yes” motion. “But...why?”

This was not the question to ask, apparently, as a hulk made of iron bounded towards the scene, finally alerted to the commotion. The villagers calmed it from its terminator-like lock-on to George, but kept it around after seeing the fear it invoked in George. They really wanted him to mine a block.

“Ok, geeze guys, I’ll break it for you.” His tone gave off a light joking and sarcastic pinch, if only to hide the fear he had after watching that beast charge him. He wasn’t going to die so soon, right? Without proper tools, the block took a good while to mine. While as in, almost an entire hour. In the meantime some of the villagers dispersed into their own daily tasks, giving George some relief from the public pressure he felt was put onto him. With a final, tired smack, he managed to successfully break the terracotta.

This caused an eruption of applause and pats on the back, both of which heavily confused George yet also plastered a nervous smile on his face. So much unexpected attention was not what he was prepared for, yet it wasn’t entirely negative. It was just confusing. A couple of villagers went back to their homes and came out with meager supplies. Some gunpowder, a handful of emeralds, and a saddle was thrust into his inventory by the returning villagers. He mildly joked to himself about “at least I don’t have to break in and steal from them” before being dragged into a random direction by a nomad. 

Before he could say anything, he was presented with a map. Not much was filled out on it, but George was still able to make out the beginnings of a lake not far from his present location. A lake meant life, right? Excitement filled him, for the first time. The sun was still treading through the sky, giving him what he presumed to be plenty of time to make it towards the surrounding biome. The villager who showed the map to him gave him a pleased smile and pointed in the proper direction before shoving him away.

Still uncertain as to what he did to deserve such hospitality, other than break a block, George took what was given to him and less-than-gracefully waved back at his living comrades. He wondered if they all reacted like that towards non-NPCs. With a couple of leftover carrots and an inventory of semi-useless junk, George set out towards where the villager had pointed.

It wasn’t until the sun was nearing the end of its journey that George finally saw the flowing river. Drastic blue clashed violently against the yellow hue the rest of the world cast. Due to the bleak colour easily blending in with the rest of the terrain, it took George a moment to realise that the biome he was staring at belonged to a Savanna. Acacia trees scattered the nearby landscape like a blessing from Notch himself. Salmon. The terrain was a perfect source of temporary food and beginning preparation. Without wasting more time, he began to swim across the river.

Despite ending up several miles away from where he originated, and completely drained of arm strength, George managed to successfully arrive in the new biome. Immediately he rushed to a tree, prepared to gather wood, before immediately grimancing once he realized he would need to put his arms through more physical labor in order to survive. Especially with night on the horizon. After five minutes of meticulously smacking the thinned tree, George finally managed to break off a log.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Getting Wood]

He was too busy celebrating his meager victory over the basics of Minecraft to notice the messages that had appeared in his chat around the same time he had earned the achievement.

_Dream whispers to you: GEORGE_

_Dream whispers to you: WHAT’S YOUR CORDS_


	3. Benchmaking + Time to Mine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes one can find comfort in someone, even if they're worlds away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve noticed these chapters have ended up being around a thousand words each, so I apologize again for my wordiness. These first few chapters are mostly focused on world building and developing the basics of the plot. I promise they’ll meet eventually and be fluffy (or maybe angsty at times-) gay beans. If you can’t handle a slow-burn, this is your last warning. Low-key my future chapters are mapped out so I have a general concept of what I want to do, but I don’t want to put a firm number of “total chapters” just yet. I will inform you all that it’s above 30, though (mostly due to the absurd number of achievements.) But hey, at least it means more to read, right?
> 
> Also, all achievements will be from Bedrock Edition simply because the site I’m using (minecraft gamepedia achievements) is where I’m getting my title ideas and stuff. Sorry if this disappoints anyone.

The night had been uncomfortable to say the least. While it was easier to hole himself up with his newfound wood, George found himself forced to stare up at the night from his makeshift wooden prison. Too afraid to move, he found out just how fatigued he truly was. Despite the sounds of death being separated by a mere wall away, he found himself drifting off to an unrestful sleep. Guess a bed would be a useful investment.

When the noise had finally died down, George found himself aching and still fatigued. Despite knowing he was now cutting into the precious day-time provided, he spent the next hour learning how to manage his inventory. Flexing his brain was easier than his muscles. He sighed in content once he felt as if he was able to quickly open and close the GUI, before standing up to stretch and remove part of his “humble abode.” Using the pieces that protected him through the night, George placed the wood into the small crafting section.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Benchmaking]

Satisfied with this development, George placed the bench down and began to work on collecting more wood. It wasn’t long before the bottom left of his vision became harassed in messages, drawing his attention to the chat.

_Sapnap whispers to you: RESPOND_

_Sapnap whispers to you: RESPOND_

_Sapnap whispers to you: RESPOND_

_Sapnap whispers to you: RESPOND_

_Sapnap whispers to you: RESPOND_

_Sapnap whispers to you: RESPOND_

Confusion flooded George, along with the relief that his friend was alive and safe. He had almost entirely forgot about the chat system, too focused on trying to survive his first few nights. Soon he found himself leaning against a tree and spending another few hours trying to open the chat. He learned that local-chat was where his words went verbally, but whispering yielded nothing being put into the chat at all. Frustrated, he slammed his hand through the ghostly GUI.

Immediately a keyboard appeared in front of him, offering him an alternative solution to speaking. George smiled. Trying to press the keys, though, ended up taking a lot more time then he’d care to admit. First of all, it was still a GUI and not expecting the player-character to be able to interact with it. This led to a lot of frustrated sighs and attempts to break through the coding used on the device. Finally, with his coding skills being put to good use, he managed to break through the boundaries that restricted him from typing in chat. It was confusing, considering that it wasn’t overly difficult to crack, yet the rest of the game’s functions couldn’t be altered even if experts spent weeks analysing its data and trying to beak into its source code.

Deciding not to ponder on it for too long, George excitedly typed in the chat.

/msg Sapnap Hey

He grinned, before spamming the message a couple more times for comedic effect. While waiting for a response, George scrolled back up through his chat logs. His heart stopped. Several messages from Dream and Sapnap had gone unnoticed while George had been sleeping and trying to survive the night.

_Dream whispers to you: DUDE_

_Dream whispers to you: You better be safe man_

_Dream whispers to you: YOU CAN RESPOND BY MESSING WITH THE CHAT, YOU’RE A CODER, RESPOND TO ME_

_Dream whispers to you: PLEASE_

_Dream whispers to you: PLEASE_

_Sapnap whispers to you: GEORGE I FOUND DREAM, WHERE ARE YOU_

_Dream whispers to you: Okay so you’re obviously alive since we can send these messages, but either are too STUPID to respond or in trouble. Please don’t be in trouble._

_Dream whispers to you: I’m sending you our coords._

_Sapnap whispers to you: I WANT ATTENTION_

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Benchmaking]

_Sapnap whispers to you: I WANT ATTENTION_

_Sapnap whispers to you: I WANT ATTENTION_

_Dream whispers to you: We’re making a base here, you better come._

_Sapnap whispers to you: I WANT ATTENTION_

_Dream whispers to you: (119.817, 76, 237.599)_

_You whisper to Sapnap: Hi_

_Dream whispers to you: GEORGE_

_Sapnap whispers to you: Oh my god he has a brain cell_

_Dream whispers to you: I WANT A RESPONSE TOO_

_Sapnap whispers to you: IGNORE DREAM, MESSAGE ME_

George chuckled slightly as Sapnap began spamming him “MESSAGE ME” after his “RESPOND” fiasco, while Dream begs for some attention too (something that made his heart feel warm and full of laughable joy.) For the first time since he’s arrived in this world, he truly feels happy. Making a mental note of the coordinates Dream sent, he sent a quick message to each of them that he’d be on his way in a short. First, he needed tools. He’d hate to go to Dream empty handed.

A pause. His brain quickly shrugs the thought off. It's probably nothing more than him just wanting to impress his friends. Of course they would tease him if he arrived unprepared. Taking his wood, with the sun glaring down signaling mid-day already, George crafted a basic pickaxe and shovel. 

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Time to Mine]

Ignoring the protest in his arms, he began digging a two-by-two hole. Stone should be a sufficient start. Gazing up he noticed that he had been digging for hours and the sun was dipping dangerously low to the horizon. He grimaced. He then used the rest of his sticks for torches. Digging out a small cave for himself, he made sure to light every corner in hopes to deter anything that might spawn. Finally, he closed off his entrance. He supposed he just had to wait through the night.

A glance down to his hotbar gave notice to the fact that his limited source of carrots was already running low. While George was juggling with the fact that he likely had only a day of food left and needed to find a herd of animals soon, his attention was drawn back to the chat. Already his messages were filled to the brim with Dream and Sapnap’s shenanigans, giving him the comfortable feeling of being close despite being what’s likely to be hundreds of blocks away. 

With a sigh he looked away. He promised himself that after he secured himself some iron armour (perhaps a few sets-) he would begin journeying to their location. His main issue was finding out how to open the Debug screen to see his own coordinates. Thoughts invaded his mind as he drifted into an uncomfortable yet comforting sleep, drowning out the sounds of zombies and skeletons that have recently taken to the overworld. Tomorrow should be a better day.


	4. Hot Topic + Getting an Upgrade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stubbornness is a virtue only sought by those who have someone to lose. Or, perhaps, impress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I’ve been in a really writing mood and have been furiously typing away chapters for this (Don’t mention the fact that it was mostly during my classes- Maybe if I pretend Chemistry doesn’t exist I won’t have to do it-) I think I have a flow I’m happy with, so hopefully you guys vibe with it as well! 
> 
> I promise this isn’t one of those fics that makes them polyamorus (sorry guys.) I just love the dynamic that is Sapnap’s bromance (homiesexual) policy (particularly if he does it to make Dream or George jealous because he finds it funny.) Such an interesting person and great comedic relief in my opinion. Maybe if I like writing this story enough, I could rewrite it in the perspective of BadBoyHalo or Dream or someone (warning; I would ship BBH and Skeppy-) if any of y'all would like to see that as well. But that’s ahead of myself. I hope you guys enjoy this as much as I do!

George woke up, that was the first disappointment. Overnight his entire mood had changed about the whole situation, and he wondered why they didn’t just remain safe in the overworld. Sure they’d be ridiculed, but having to run by each day on hellish sleep and constant sore muscles was not something George was looking forward to nor expected. He was a scrawny boy who made a living off of Youtube after all. With a sigh, he pushed himself up. The chat was no longer being spammed, leaving him with the worried “goodnight” messages Sapnap and Dream sent. 

He moved to stand, desperately trying to ignore the ache that had overtaken his body. He really needed a bed. Listening for a moment granted him with sweet silence, a sign that day had already started. Glancing around his small cave gave him ideas. This was the perfect location to mine and find materials needed to safely travel to his friends. He could quickly grab some iron and coal, make a furnace, and go to the outside world to begin his adventures. Food could be a problem to worry about on the surface.

Too afraid to open the top of his hole, he began to dig around his enclosed location. Stone. Stone. Coal! More stone. Some iron to get later. Stone. This process went on for what felt like hours, wearing down George’s muscles until they simply refused to work further. Either way it was fine, his wooden pickaxe had broken anyways (no point in wasting durability.) Developing a brain cell, he went to craft a new one with the stone he had acquired. Three stone and-. Oh. He forgot he had run out of sticks while crafting torches.

With a groan that was far too over exaggerated for the simple issue, George dragged himself up and carefully removed a piece of the “cave” ceiling. Light immediately invaded the hole. Glaring up into the sun, George carefully crawled his way out of his shelter. The difference between daylight and torchlight was more staggering than he’d like to admit. Trees. That was what brought him out of his little hole in the first place. A simple glance around gave him all the information he needed. Savanas were rather barren, but their trees weren’t overly rare. 

After another hour of collecting logs (just to ensure he wouldn’t have to continuously make trips like these,) George returned to his sanctuary. Once inside he sighed. Minecraft life was harsh and horrible with too much physically demanding activities than he would have liked. A glance at his chat caused him to groan externally yet filled his stomach with strange butterflies.

_Dream whispers to you: GEORGEEEE_

_Dream whispers to you: WHAT’S TAKING YOU SO LONG_

_Dream whispers to you: ARE YOU THAT FAR AWAY?_

_Dream whispers to you: GIVE ME YOUR CORDS, I’M COMING TO YOU INSTEAD_

_Dream whispers to you: JUST HIDE SOMEWHERE OKAY?_

_Dream whispers to you: DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW TO ACCESS THE MENU?_

_Dream whispers to you: GEORRRGGGGGGIIIEEEEEE_

_You whisper to Dream: Hiii_

_You whisper to Dream: Wow you missed me that much?_

_Dream whispers to you: CORDS NOW_

_Dream whispers to you: Also no, I’m just worried about you_

_You whisper to Dream: Awww softieeee. I’ll give you them if you let me see what’s under your mask ;)._

_Dream whispers to you: GEORGE THIS ISN’T A GAME._

_You whisper to Dream: You’re no fun :( Also technically it isssss~_

_Dream whispers to you: You know what, you can die out there._

_You whisper to Dream: omg no come pick me up dad_

_Dream whispers to you: HOW AM I SUPPOSE TO DO ANYTHING WITHOUT YOUR CORDS??_

_You whisper to Dream: But Dreeeaammm, I don’t know how to access themmm, I’ll head over to you guys soon. You better be ready._

_Dream whispers to you: ARE YOU SERIOUS_

George chuckled to himself as he closed the chat, content to focus on his surroundings while there was still daylight left to burn. His small cave was rather large and expansive, giving him the ability to set up a temporary base. Using some of the sticks he made, he crafted even more torches and littered them around the room. The yellow warmth made him feel safe. He wished Dream was there. George froze before laughing to himself in his small yet lonely enclosure. He wished all his friends were there. Like Dream and Sapnap and Dream and BadBoyHalo and Dre-. 

George frowned. Surely he had more friends than that. Yet all his mind seemed to focus on was that stupid green blob figure of a man. He shook it off. It was probably just because they spent so much time together doing everything and had become best friends. Yes. That was precisely it. Still, he went about the crafting table with a furrowed brow. First he would need some furnaces to smelt the iron he wanted to collect, as well as any food that he might need.

Oh right, food. George had forgotten to grab some when he first went up, though he did see a nearby herd of pigs grazing on the dry grass. He shrugged and pushed it off for a later task. He had enough food for another day if he rationed it out anyways. Focusing again on his planned task, George placed some of the stone he had gathered into the crafting table. A square.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Hot Topic]

Crafting multiple furnaces, George placed them haphazardly along the wall where he had set his crafting table. Luckily he had found some core while digging out his temporary home. Placing the coal neatly into each bottom socket, he dug around his inventory for some sticks and three more stone pieces. It’d be much easier on him to mine the iron with a stone pickaxe rather than a flimsy wooden one that would surely decimate his arms.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Getting an Upgrade]

It was time to get to work, and actually make progress this time. He turned to the walls of his shelter. Gleaming in the torchlight was several shining ores, begging to be mined and smelted down into armour and tools. With another groan at having to exert more physical effort (he really was going to make Dream and Sapnap do all the work once he reached them-,) George started striking away with his new pickaxe.


	5. Acquired Hardware + Monster Hunter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When in doubt, your brain is the best weapon one has.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in one day? Blasphemy. It’s Homecoming where we are though, so I suppose ya’ll can take this as a form of celebration. I’ve been working on chapter 6 (first single achievement chapter) and it’s almost twice as long as these normal chapters. Hopefully that goes smoothly. I’m getting better at moving the story along, I promise :D. Enjoy!
> 
> This is around the time where I’m posting too fast and falling behind on chapters available to be posted, so updates may change to every couple of days vs every day like it has been. Sorry! Right now I am still ahead so we’ll see what the weekend does to me. Lowkey did this chapter instead of my Chemistry lmao-.
> 
> I’m also tempted to start a new project with the Skephalo fandom, but it would mean this one would probably have even longer update times. Will let you guys know how it goes.

George was tired. It wasn’t until he threw the ingots into the crafting table that he realized how truly fatigued he was. Night had fallen and passed without much to note, and now he was trying to wait for the iron to finish smelting so he could craft armour and begin his journey to Dream. Dream and Sapnap. Yes, both of them. A pang of jealousy lodged itself in his stomach at the notion of his friends getting to be together while he was stranded in these wastelands, but it soon faded away as his mind focused back to the task at hand. Thinking wasn’t going to get him anywhere. Action would.

His chat had been rather silent, with Dream messaging him with casual conversations throughout the day (and sometimes night) in order to make him feel not so alone. Sometimes Sapnap messaged him too. Apparently they had located BadBoyHalo and Skeppy (both of which had found each other in a tundra) and were bringing them back to the “home base.” George smiled. While he didn’t really know Skeppy too well, Bad had always been a reliable source of happiness and good energy. It was nice to know they were still alive.

With a final ding, the furnaces dispensed the last of their ingots. Earlier George had gone out and slaughtered the small herd of pigs that grazed nearby in order to sustain himself through the night, which meant it took even longer for him to find time to smelt the iron. Trying not to think too much about it, George carefully placed the ingots into his inventory. He walked to the crafting table.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement  [Acquired Hardware]

It didn’t take long for him to successfully craft a suit of armour (minus boots) with what he had. Sadly, he didn’t have enough for anything else (he had used a few ingots earlier on a new pickaxe and shovel in order to make his mining easier) and couldn’t be bothered to go fetch more. He was too excited. Finally he was ready to head out and meet up with his friends. A sheepish thought crossed his mind as he remembered making Sapnap explain to him how to hack into the Debug menu before informing him that it wasn’t to release his own cords (a message which Sapnap must have told Dream because Dream instantly had begun spamming him worried insults that soon turned to begging which George almost fell victim to-) but instead wanted to use it to find his way to them. 

Picking up his furnaces, he took one last look around his “base” before digging back up. The sun was always a bastard, he noted as his eyes fell victim to the intense light. It was currently mid-day, giving him plenty of time to start his journey. Looking at his own cords, he realized that his friends were only a couple thousand blocks away. His legs argued that this was a lot, but he reasoned with himself that at least it could have been much worse. Crunching the grass under his feet, he set off.

Armour was heavy. The thought kept replaying in his mind. Part of him was tempted to take if off, but he was afraid a zombie hiding under a tree might surprise him. Could he contract the zombie plague? He assumed not since it wasn’t an actual feature in Minecraft, but he didn’t want to find out. Another thing he noticed was that he couldn’t chat. If he used the chat, he would have to stop. Stopping mean his legs would collapse. Collapsing meant he wasn’t making any progress to Dream.

At the halfway point, George needed a break. The sun was dipping dangerously low and his entire body screamed in pain and uncomfortable wetness from the various rivers he had to cross. With a discontent sigh, he grabbed some torches. He had left the Savanna and ended up in the middle of a mountainous monstrosity. Trying to avoid climbing too high, George had been taking several detours that have led in little progress being made. He sighed and looked into a nearby cave. If he could just block off the entrance and close off the rest of it, he would be able to rest contently.

Upon entering, he immediately littered the ground with torches to prevent mob spawn. While filling in the entrance, a strange rattle sounded from behind him. He turned right as an arrow embedded itself into his arm. Pain. George screamed, jumping back as another arrow whizzed by him. A skeleton grinned from the darkness, having been lurking there to escape the daylight. George grabbed his pickaxe and rushed the undead beast, who kept dodging his attacks with scary agility.

He had to think fast. Already the noises of the battle had alerted other monstrosities, as zombie groans grew louder with each passing second. George gripped his pickaxe tightly, barely dodging an arrow lodged itself into the wall behind him. He threw the pickaxe. The skeleton was caught off guard, not expected such a strange reaction, before realizing its mistake. The pickaxe cleaved through its brittle body and clanged to the floor. George took his iron shovel and began mercilessly beating the creature’s skull until it vanished into item drops.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement  [Monster Hunter]

Adrenaline still flush in his veins, George rapidly placed a shield of blocks between him and the rest of the cave. Finally satisfied that he was enclosed from both sides, he lit up his temporary enclosure. It was hard to tell if the moans of the undead were caused by the decline of the sun or the cave he shared his camp with. A sigh. At least this would give him proper time to rest and eat for the journey ahead. He tapped into his chat and shot Dream a quick message that he was almost there (to which Dream began insistently asking for his Cords instead, reminding George of an overprotective dad.) 

Sapnap began sending a few messages of his own, trying to vie for his friends attention, but George was too tired to continue chatting. With a quick goodnight, he leaned against the wall. His hearts had dropped drastically, much more then he would have expected compared to what happens in-game. He suspected that damage worked similar to the overworld, in which being hit on the hand would do less damage than being hit on the head. With a sigh, he carefully snapped off the end of the arrow and spent the next few hours painfully trying to remove it.

Finally his efforts became successful (after many breaks to eat to ensure he didn’t bring his hearts down too low while “damaging” himself (what a weird phenomenon.) The arrow quickly placed itself into his inventory and George leaned back once more. His clothes were in ruins from having to quickly cut out pieces to cover over the “bleeding” (it didn’t actually bleed, but George wasn’t taking any chances at dying. Plus he hated looking at the foreign red hole the arrow had caused.) The sounds of monsters filled every crevice and space. Yes, a sword would definitely be necessary. And with that thought lingering inside of his mind, George fell into a rocky sleep. 


	6. Time to Strike!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Progress is like gambling. Two steps back could mean a thousand steps forward. All we can do is keep putting our money into the machine and pray for a jackpot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First single-achievement chapter wooo! These are a lot of fun to write (though yes I know I am very slow with my pace, I promise I’m trying my best to add more skips and stuff) and I’m excited for what I currently have planned out. Y’know, I wrote the chapter titles ahead of time to give me a general idea of what I wanted, and it often changes when I actually reach that chapter. Pretty wild. Lowkey usually because I’m too slow to reach my desired ideas though-. Oh well, hopefully it doesn’t drop the quality too much. 
> 
> This is also around the time where I'm playing more with some time-skipping so we can actually make progress (and try to keep on pace with my pre-planned ideas- Besides, if someone gets hurt and they have only been introduced for a chapter then it isn't as impactful as a character that has been around for 10 chapters ;p)
> 
> I adore your guy’s comments and everything, they really make me happy :D. I'll try to respond to them but I'm awkward and shy and need to build up the mental state to personally reach out to people. When I do respond I'll try to do them all at once so nobody is ignored! It makes me happy that I can provide something for the community to read and enjoy. On that note, I have been working on adding more angst/consequences in later chapters so prepare yourselves for that. Right now I need some fluff in my life though so that's what ya'll are going to primarily get (depends on how my mood changes though, and what chapter we're on ;)  
> However, I again warn that, this is my first fic so I’ll have to get use to all those quirks and gimmicks, so sorry if the angst or anything is slightly underwhelming. Hopefully it will improve with time (my writing of it, not everyone dying as if it's Game of Thrones 2.0- lmao.) Will try not to disappoint! I hope you guys enjoy it so far though :D!
> 
> Chapter posted earlier than usual since there's no classes for the weekend.

He had arrived. Night was threatening to spill over once more, but George finally stared down the coordinates that his friend had given him so long ago. Settled in a small valley and trapped between a rocky impasse was a tiny settlement nestled close to a stream. George’s tired limbs screamed in agony as his brain went into overdrive and forced him to sprint towards the location. He shouted, “GUYS!” before realizing how strangled his voice sounded. He did suppose “whispering in text” didn’t help keep his voice in prime shape.

Still, it wasn’t long before his raspy voice drew the attention of some of those that inhabited the facility. A strange man clad in false diamond attire and a duck onesie stepped forward to greet him. George stopped running. The two stared awkwardly for a moment before a black with red-lace hooded figure stepped out from a nearby house. It audibly gasped, before forcing George into a hug.

“DREAAAMMMMM, IT’S GEORGE. OHMYGOSH GEORGE YOU MUFFINHEAD WHY DIDN’T YOU JUST LET SAPPY NAPPY AND DREAM GO GET YOU, YOU LOOK TERRIBLE,” the edgy avatar pulled away to worriedly look at George’s battered body.

The diamond man curiously shuffled over, giving a bored glance up and down George’s attire. “So you’re the guy everyone’s going crazy for. Nice glasses,” he said before realizing something else, “IS THAT A SUPREME LOGO? BROOOO,” the man began to laugh maniacally while BadBoyHalo (at least that’s who George assumed it was) stared at him from the darkness of his hood (probably with an annoyed expression.)

George opted to ignore the loud diamond person, and instead grinned up at his friend, “Bad, who knew you’d be so tiny. That outfit barely fits on you.” He began chuckling as Bad began staring at his sleeves and noticed their long length.

“Shut up you muffinhead, you know, Dream has been-” Bad was abruptly cut off as a shrill “GEORGE” filled the air.

“Speak of the muffin and he shall arrive.”

“GEORGE YOU MORON,” screamed a voice George had etched deeply into his mind. Just the sound of it filled him with childish joy, despite the insult that was loosely attached to the phrase. It only took a moment before a man clad in a dark yellow (though George know it’s suppose to be green) hoodie and round smiley-face mask to bound out from a house located in the center of the place.

“Dream!” George’s cracked voice returned with fevor as he quickly turned his attention towards his best friend. The back of his mind mentally noted how tall his best friend was before being embraced in an air-choking hug. Safety. George gratefully embraced his friend, releasing a small and discontent whine when Dream pulled away to get a better look at him.

“George, you look _terrible_.” Dream’s voice was filled with worry laced around his standard comedic tone. George punched his shoulder before laughing. 

“Wow I didn’t come all the way here just to be bullied, _Dream_.” 

Dream huffed before pushing George towards the center house. Bad and the diamond man waved them off, with Bad promising to visit later. George only took two steps inside the house before he was tackled again into another hug.

“Sapnap let go of me,” George choked out with a goofy smile. While he relished his friend’s attention, his body was sore beyond belief and the previous hugs had taken all of his energy. Soon he felt Dream pulling Sapnap off of him.

“GEORGE! WHERE WERE YOU? DID YOU MEET THE VILLAGERS YET, THEY’RE SO WEI-” George laughed as Sapnap began rambling about random events and worries while also checking him over for major injuries or issues. Dream watched nearby, fidgeting on the hem of his outfit. After finishing his rant, Sapnap reached in for another quick hug before pacing around the house. 

Dream cleared his throat,

“Sapnap, while I’m sure George would _love_ a house tour, I think he needs some sleep.”

Sapnap humming in response, before excitedly pointing towards a room near the left. George nervously wandered inside. The interior was rather barren, with only three beds (each with a chest near the foot of them) filling the wooden interior. He ran to the nearest one and collapsed. Sleep washed over him almost instantly, drowning out the chuckles and phrases his friends offered him.

Waking up had been annoying. George was immediately alert to the presence of another person next to him, causing him to freeze and wait for the other to wake up. After what seemed like hours, George finally decided to just try and escape his current predicament. Ignoring the blush that had formed on his face upon noticing a certain mask, George untangled himself from the limbs of his best friend and began to stand. His efforts weren’t unnoticed.

“Good morningggg~” Dream’s drowsy voice echoed through the chamber, causing George to cringe and glance at Sapnap (who was still sleeping soundly thankfully.)

“Dream, what were you doing,” George whispered accusingly, though the malice he had intended was already gone, replaced by confusion and embarrassment.

“Hey, you’re the one that decided to crash in _my_ bed.” Dream chuckled, obviously amused.

“Then sleep on the other one," George huffed, tacking on a much quieter "God” near the end of his sentence.

“Too comfy. Plus you looked like you really needed the sleep so I didn’t want to move you.”

“You’re so difficult.”

“Not as difficult as you.”

George huffed, knowing he wouldn’t get anywhere in this argument. He ran a hand through his hair and touched the comically large glasses that his character used. Luckily the outfit let him move accessories around, he doesn’t know if he would have survived having to stare through such an inconvenience. Dream watched him silently. His mask covering his every emotion made George feel slightly on edge.

“Are you ready for today?” Dream asked mischievously. Before George could respond, Dream hopped up and dragged George to another room, leaving Sapnap to sleep. He led him to a few chests located near some furnaces. George mentally took in the barren design of the house. Must have been rushed. Still, he felt more at home then he had the previous few days. At least they were all alive. For now.

While George was lost in his thoughts, Dream haphazardly grabbed a couple of iron ingots and sticks. He thrusted them towards George, who stared back confused.

Dream chuckled, “Make a sword, silly. I swear, how did you ever survive without us?” 

George stuck out his tongue, though he did feel slightly guilty at the way Dream had sounded. His friends were worried about him and he let his pride take hold and decided to come here rather than be rescued. A sigh. He carefully placed the materials into the correct position.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Time to Strike!]

Though George couldn’t see his face, he knew Dream had a devious smile hidden under his mask. Without saying anything, Dream dragged them to the outside world. George pulled away for a moment, blushing from the sudden contact, in order to look around better. It was his first day and he wanted to look around a bit. Dream, however, had other plans.

“Sapnap can show you around later, right now you should come with me,” Dream whined, drawing out every other word. George relented, still throwing meager insults towards Dream to express his annoyance about the situation.

“What are we even doing? I just get here and you’re already going to make me go fight stuff?” George jested at his friend. Dream chuckled slightly.

“No, but I will _not_ have you running around without knowing how to proper wield a sword. What if a mob breaks in or something? Sure they can’t spawn in light, but I think you’re mistaking how smart these AIs actually are.”

“But _Dreaaaammmm_ , I’m tired and sore. I spent the past few days in discomfort and near-death, and now you want me to put my body through _more_ work?” George said incredulously. Sure the nap was wonderful, but a simple nap wasn’t going to rejuvenate all of his motor functions right away.

“That’s _exactly_ why you need to be trained. What if you have to fight something? I don’t want you to get hurt any more,” the worry in Dream’s voice slightly overtook his casual demeanor.

“Then let's just train tomorrow or something. It’s not like I’m going to be-” George paused as his body instinctively lunged back from Dream’s wooden sword. He shrilled out a quick “DREAM” as he dodged another swing.

Dream stopped his attacks and laughed, “You got to pay attention. I told you that we needed to train. What if I had kept attacking?”

George sighed. He knew it was an important skill to learn, and Dream was going to force him through this no matter what. Sometimes concern showed its face in the strangest ways. With his body giving one final protest, George raised his iron sword. He took in their surroundings. They were now in a nearby forest that threatened to spill itself into their mountain valley sanctuary. Apparently his pose was not the correct way to go, as Dream began chuckling once more.

“First of all, I’m not fighting you. You have an iron sword for God’s sake. Besides, your posture is horrendous,” Dream walked over and began moving George’s arms and legs into proper positions, making sounds of discontent whenever George would try and move. Finally satisfied, he stepped back.

“Wow Dream, didn’t know that Minecraft made you an expert at swordsmanship.” George joked, though he was extremely curious as to where Dream learned such skills. He was met with silence. He glanced over to see his friend’s mask staring stoically back. The scene itself was unnerving, and George wished he could peel away the mask and see the expression that lingered underneath.

Finally, after a moment of uncomfortable silence, Dream began to laugh again. George, who had lunged towards a tree in an attempt to attack it, tripped over himself at the sudden noise. George shot his friend an annoyed look.

“What’s so funny?”

“It’s nothing. Also, we spent the nights waiting for you just practicing our combat abilities just incase something arose, since _someone_ wouldn’t give us his cords.” Dream’s amused tone faltered slightly as the sentence went on, and a slightly bitter tone took its place.

Opting to ignore it, George continued to hack at the tree. Every so often Dream would offer a tip or walk over to correct his posture or agree to let George rest. Sapnap and Bad occasionally stopped in to watch and offer George some conversation/attention. Soon, midday had finished its cycle and the air became chilled with night’s looming presence. Despite the hardships of this life, George was grateful to be able to spend such time with his friends. At least he wasn’t alone anymore.

“You’re doing great George! I’m so proud of you. Tomorrow, I get to swing at you and we’ll practice dodging,” Dream stated with an excited tone, “for now, though, let's go get something to eat and meet up with the others.”

George's brain was too tired to focus on anything besides the fuzzy feeling that Dream’s compliment had given him to properly process what he said until a few moments later. 

“Wait, WHAT?”


	7. Time to Farm + MOAR Tools

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One can be surrounded by positivity yet still blanketed in the guilt of a crime not committed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots to write! Motivation dwindling! Sugar is gone! Save me D:. Anyways, here’s chapter 7, sorry but it's slightly on the shorter side (this is one of those chapters where I'm like: "ok this is a thing, let me move on to the cooler chapters" which I'm trying not to do, so hopefully it's still somewhat amusing/interesting.) I’ve also started really pondering about working on another fanfiction on the side (after noticing the atrocious lack of finished Skephalo writing.) I see a lot of people run with a "DemonBoyHalo" kind of aesthetic, and let me tell you I live for that with my entire being. It sounds so fun. My inner author is itching to make it more of a reality-.
> 
> I’ve also been trying to limit the amount of “super long paragraphs” so that it’s not such an eyesore to read. Issue is, with so much dialogue, I hate seeing such “short’ entries (despite my word count remaining rather consistent.) Will try to work on better balancing this.

Living with his friends was truly a rollercoaster. George could sense an aura of guilt radiating behind every happy experience as well as moment, and noticed how everyone kept practicing even after their muscles threatened to explode and bodies cried for rest. He had the general idea of why during a conversation with Bad one afternoon.

“Why is everyone so gloomy? I thought this was going to be an awful experience, but you guys make it easy and fun. We send people out to hunt and we have designated mineshafts and shelter. I could almost live here!” George proudly proclaimed, munching on a steak that had been provided. Bad hesitated slightly.

“Well,” the cloaked figure struggled for a moment to find proper wording, “it’s like. We’re all feeling guilty because while we’re doing quite well, thousands of normal people die every day. Some of them are kids, George. Think about it. You could barely survive on your own, and we’re just managing to get by as a group of experts. We have to make progress towards beating the game eventually, don’t we?” Bad offered George a worried expression, obviously tired of having to think about such pessimistic things.

George pondered for awhile before responding, “Yeah but...we’re just human too. We can take time to relax and prepare.”

Bad sighed, already regretting this conversation, “That’s the point. We are the best shot at surviving this game and winning, George. All of us. And here we are, wasting time, when half of us could be building a nether portal and the rest could be farming or something. I don’t know. I think we’re just scared to lose our friends. We’re scared to die.”

They sat in silence for awhile before a shrill voice pierced through their feeble tranquility.

“BADDDDD I’M BOOORRREEEDDD,” the diamond man from before waltzed into the room. His face-covering was pulled down this time, revealing a teenage-looking boy with a bronze skin tone. His dark hair puffed out from under his duckie onesie (George amusedly pondered over why he put a onesie on over his actual outfit) and his eyes were full of a childish yet chaotic energy. If George wasn’t so focused on his own friend group and thoughts, he would have found the other male to be rather attractive.

Bad immediately brightened up at the arrival of the strange man. “Skeppy! There you are you little ragamuffin. I thought you had abandoned me,” Bad said in a gleeful yet slightly hurt tone. George, however, immediately felt relief that the attention was shifted to a less depressing topic. He supposed that the wild child who walked in was Skeppy.

Skeppy huffed before responding, “Badddd, you know I’d never do something like thattttt,” as Bad began to protest, he quickly continued with a, “noooooo I wouldn’ttttt.” The two playfully bickered back and forth for awhile before Bad finally succumbed to his loss. George was enjoying the show before Bad focused on him once more.

“Anyways George, I think Dream and Sapnap are looking for you. They said they were out by the forest awhile ago,” Bad offered while waving his hands around as if to express his point. George agreed that it was about time he head out and said a final goodbye to Bad and his other friend (who screamed it back in response.) With a huff, he started out towards the forest.

Standing before him was Dream and Sapnap, sparing with wooden hoes over a poorly made farm. As George approached they temporarily paused. He grinned sheepishly and offered a meager wave. They dropped their tools and began to beckon him closer, leading him towards the muddied and soiled grass.

“GEORGE! We’re trying to make a farm so we don’t have to keep sending people out into the woods. Yesterday Sapnap almost got hit by a stray arrow that a skeleton had shot while he was out hunting. I think some of them have learned that the sunlight kills them so they hide in the shadows until it’s night,” Dream offered with a concerned tone.

“Yeah dude, it was pretty wild. At least this way we can have a sustainable food source anyways. Dream went to get the water buckets but ever since he’s just been goofing off-” Dream piped in with a quick ‘Hey’ before Sapnap chuckled and continued, “so we really need your help to stay on track,”

“Okkkaaayyy,” George said in his traditional ‘I don’t really get it but I’ll go with it’ voice. Sapnap quickly fistbumped the air before shouting in success. George wandered over to the crafting table in order to properly prepare, ignoring how Dream and Sapnap instantly went back to messing around with their tools. The pessimistic thoughts that Bad had told him about earlier kept randomly creeping in, like an unwanted shadow. He shook his head. Right now he needed to focus on getting his friends on track and a safer food source secured.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Time to Farm]  
GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [MOAR TOOLS]

He grinned as his friends began teasing him for “just now earning those achievements.” George assumed that they could see his general chat and achievements due to the close proximity now. Giving a mocking bow, he strutted towards the others.

“Okay guys, let's get to work,” He said with confidence. However, after seeing the mischievous look Sapnap and Dream exchanged, he knew he was in for a long day.


	8. Cow Tipper + Repopulation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where there is pain, there is worry. Where there is death, there is life. Those are the simple rules of humanity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Some angst (or at least my attempt at it? It's primarily to get a better grasp on how mechanics of this story's world works.) It's a slow-burn fic about them being thrown into Minecraft, sorry if ya'll wanting it to be free of pain and emotion.
> 
> Sleep? What’s sleep? No sleep, need fanfiction- hshssh. This chapter is really a lot of uncharted territory for me and me just exploring things to use in future chapters (you’ll see some lore things about how damage works in this chapter.) This is another one of those chapters that lean more towards “filler” and less towards “progress” but I’m still trying to make these just as interesting as the more important chapters :D. It’s also slightly longer then usual to compensate for last chapter’s shortfalls (totally not just because I got 100% sidetracked before realizing I was nowhere near what I wanted-) Also lowkey MegaPVP is my icon, even though he’s nowhere in this story (yet?) I’ve been watching a lot of Skeppy/BBH videos lately and honestly Mega is one of my favourite people. Anyways, have a wonderful time reading!
> 
> My notes for this chapter’s idea was just “kills cow, feels bad, makes more cow. Simple” and let me tell you that is not how this went lmao. Sometimes you just have to try and make an achievement work even though you’re normal-chapter length in and nowhere near the achievements for the chapter :). Lowkey hate the middle part of this chapter because I wrote it while distressed and hate re-reading my own work (it makes me want to delete everything and never touch it again lmao-) but hopefully it isn’t complete trash.

Pain. George was currently on three hearts and desperately trying to escape with his limited life. Stumbling through the woods, he rushed back towards the settlement. An arrow embedded itself into the tree inches away. Adrenaline. His legs screamed and the wheat he held flew out of his hand and left his inventory. With a final burst of speed, George leapt out of the forest just as a hissing sounded behind him. Shaking in the torchlight, he continued to sprint until he burst into the house he shared with his friends.

Dream was the first to greet him, as always, before freezing when he noticed the state George was in. Arrows protruded from several places in his limbs, and a long scratch mark cut across his back. George offered a faint smile. Too frozen to say anything, Dream rushed forward and began carefully looking over his injured friend. Sapnap was currently tending to the garden out back, leaving the two of them alone.

Finally Dream’s brain activated once more and he rushed to the nearby chests.  
“GEORGE, WHAT DID I TELL YOU?” Dream’s voice was one of sheer concern and fear, making George shrivel back as if being scolded by a parent. He didn’t respond. He knew what he did was stupid, but all he wanted to do was impress Dream. To be more useful. A farm without animals to breed and kill was hardly a good farm, after all.

George had wanted to leave the next day when the day was still new, but his schedule every morning was one solely consisting of training and farming. The afternoon was the only ample time for him to do what he wanted. And now here he was, unaware of how far away animals truly were (Sapnap and them must have mass genocide'd all the nearby animals during the period they didn’t have an operable farm,) and near-death once again. He silently cursed himself for his stupidity as Dream worriedly forced food into his hands.

“You need to rest and- and- you need to heal. Here, eat. EAT GEORGE,” the taller masked man anxiously stared down his friend. George gulped down the carrots offered, grateful when his hearts started to slowly climb up. His gaze fell when he noticed how upset Dream had become. His brain could hardly process the fact that he had just almost died, but he was acutely aware of how wrecked Dream currently was. Because of him. He made his best friend worry.

“George do you have any idea just how stupid what you just did was? What if you died? I could have sent out literally anyone else to go get some stupid cows, but nooooo, you wanted to leave at the brink of night?” Dream rambled. George took a sharp intake of breath, prepared to respond, when a sharp pain shot through him again and his hearts dropped once more. Dream had begun pulling out the arrows. Noticing his pain, Dream sighed.

“Go lay down George, I need to get these arrows out of you otherwise the wound won’t heal, even if you eat all the food in the house. The cut has already healed, but the rest of you is still wounded. We need to be careful. Do you hear me George? Careful.”

George shook his head in understanding, not trusting himself to speak. Part of him was still in shock. As Dream continued to pull out arrows (stopping during and after each to ensure George ate and stayed at as many hearts as possible, which was currently capped at 6) he spoke sweet nothings to his friend. Remaining calm while being put through what was essentially torture was hard. Eventually George’s scream attracted the attention of their other roomate who had finished his chores in the garden. George grimmanced. Sapnap immediately focused on the scene at hand, rushing over to see what was going on.

“GEORGE?” Sapnap fretted towards them, not willing to disturb Dream’s flow but also wanting to offer help in some form. George cringed back, partially from pain and partially from his name being screamed. He felt like they screamed his name a lot. As his thoughts began to wander, Dream snapped him back into reality in order to make him eat.

The rest of the night consisted of Dream carefully removing the arrows from George as Sapnap lingered nearby and offered support where he could (primarily in the form of fetching more food and talking about nonsense in order to distract them all from the depressing reality of George’s potential death.)

After having the arrows removed (courtesy of Dream) and hearts restored without the lingering threat of a cap less then max (though the sore feeling and pain still lingered where each had penetrated,) George found himself curled in bed as the midday sun beat down outside. Unwilling to leave him alone despite being in the safety of their home, George often found himself dozing in and out of sleep with either Sapnap or Dream lingering nearby. He thought it was slightly amusing that the one day he was allowed to rest was when he was injured. Sometimes when it was Dream who was watching over him, he would chide George for his actions, similar to how a parent would when their child breaks their arm doing something they were told not to do. Darkness. Confusing blurred images. More darkness. Sound that may or may not exist.

The next time George fully woke up was an entire day later. Dream had gone out (George presumed to tend to the farm and other duties around the facility.) and Sapnap was also gone. In their place sat Bad, who had seemingly fallen asleep himself nearby. George watched the dark hooded figure for awhile, not willing to move and disturb his body’s temporary tranquility.

Peace didn’t stay long, and soon George found himself hearing the clicking of doors and clanking of iron as one of his roommates seemed to return. Bad jolted awake from the noise, sparing only a moments glance at George (whose immediate reaction was to feign sleep) before exchanging a few words with who George recognized was Sapnap. As Bad left, Sapnap walked over and gently prodded George.

“Hey man, you awake yet, or are you still as dead as a zombie,” Sapnap chuckled to himself slightly, before jumping back as George shot up in the bed with a horrendous expression. Sapnap’s scream attracted a confused Bad back inside to see what the issue was. George began hysterically laughing (much to his body’s demise) as Sapnap feigned having a heart attack on the floor. Bad’s body expression immediately shifted into one of slight concern for his friend as well as excitement that George was finally awake, before informing the two that he was going to go inform Dream.

“Don’t cause too much trouble you fatties,” Bad nervously joked before heading out. Sapnap and George continued to lightly banter around, though the original fevor of their friendly scuffle had died down quickly. Sapnap coughed.

“Geeze George, you can’t do that to a man. I thought we were friends,” he teased slightly. George just rolled his eyes in response, mood already damped once more as he realized the reality of the world had not changed during his feverish nap. It wasn’t long before Bad returned with Dream in tow. The four of them sat around the bed, not overly sure what to say that wasn’t a repeat of the original night.

Finally taking a sigh, Dream broke the silence, “Didja have a good sleep?” His comedic tone did nothing to cure the tension in the room. George just offered a mild shrug in return. Silence.

The next to speak up was Bad, who meagerly stated that he had to go off and take care of Skeppy before the chaotic being got into too much trouble. Wishing George well and offering an air hug (he was too worried about hurting George more to physically touch him just yet) Bad saunted out of the house. Sapnap tried to bring the mood back up by offering meager jests and false insults but soon stopped once he realized it did nothing to ease the tension in the air. They remained like that for awhile, before George finally sighed and leaned back down onto the bed.

Soon Sapnap anxiously wandered away, hoping that the tension would lessen with less people around (though he’d be sure to bother the hell out of George later.) The silence afterwards was nearly suffocating. George glanced at his best friend. A never-changing expression stared back. He closed his eyes and sighed. How did he ever get himself into this situation? A few more moments of silence passed without change before Dream cleared his throat, signalling that he wanted to speak.

“So,” he stated cautiously, as if talking to a cornered animal, “I take it that your nap wasn’t all that great?” George groaned as Dream casually slipped into a comfortable demeanor. He briefly wondered how someone obtained such a skill. It surely must make conversation a lot easier.

“It was pretty horrible,” George confirmed, not looking at his friend. He was tired. His mental state yearned for the rest his physical state got. Dream went silent for a moment, causing George to look over at his friend. He watched the way Dream fidgeted with his deep yellow jacket, idly wondering if he even knew he was doing it.

Dream chuckled nervously, slightly deterred by George’s sour attitude but not willing to abandon him now that he was awake. There was a lot to be done still, and as much as Dream hated to admit it, losing George for just a day had set them back for awhile (not to mention significantly dropped team moral.) Dream sighed. He wished he could just stuff George into a box and keep him safe until this nightmare was over, to protect him from the things that lurked in the darkness and feared the light. Shaking the negative (and slightly protective) thoughts away, Dream cracked a small smile, knowing that George was unable to see it under his mask.

“Hey, come with me. You gotta move your muscles after remaining still for so long,” Dream offered graciously, patiently waiting for George to return his gaze. George sighed.

“I don’t have much of a choice, do I?”

Dream smiled in response, already standing near the doorway. George willed his muscles to move, being sure to groan in annoyance every few seconds. Sure he could be quicker, and the impatient tapping of Dream’s foot told him he probably wished for such a reality, but he was not really looking forward to whatever Dream had planned. He swore to himself if it was another training session he would leave and go live in the desert with the nomads. Though he couldn’t see it, George could feel the excitement and relief that radiated from his friend once he finally reached the doorway.

They were currently at the farm. For some reason Dream had been excited to show George what they had been working on while he was “out of commission.” His brain dully noted the fact that the entrance to the forest was now walled off with a singular door as a way to enter it (probably to deter any more foolish explorations in the middle of the night.) While George was pondering, a shadow moved out of the corner of his eye. George jumped back, instinctively swinging at whatever had triggered his fight or flight response. The poor creature died instantly, not prepared for such a strong blow.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Cow Tipper]

For a moment nothing happened, George still slightly fueled with adrenaline and whiplash. Then, out of nowhere, Dream began bellowing out his iconic tea-kettle wheeze (a sign which George knew was him laughing.) George looked over at him wide-eyed and confused, which only made Dream laugh harder. He huffed. Looking down greeted him with leather and meat taunting him from his hotbar. A sheepish look overtook him as he embarrassedly looked back up to Dream, who had miraculously doubled his laughter.

They stayed like that for awhile, with George slowly changing from embarrassed to slightly annoyed as Dream kept laughing harder each time it started to die down. Finally it seemed as if Dream was over it and could speak once more (albeit not without chuckling the entire time.)

“Wow George, with such skill how did you ever get hurt in the first place? Teach me your ways my master,” Dream started up his laughter again, causing George to impatiently stutter and wait to speak himself.

Finally George muttered out a quiet “sorry” before fidgeting with his sword. His body was on edge, not willing to go back to a damaged state. It was slightly worrisome. What if that had been one of his friends? As George became lost in thought, Dream wiped away a metaphorical tear from his mask.

“God George you’re so stupid.” The casual insult was not something uncommon between them. In fact, it was a form of affection, strangely enough. Still, George flinched back from the words, worried about hurting his friends feelings further. Noticing this, Dream quickly stopped his jesting and walked over. Placing his arm casually around George (causing the ladder to furiously blush and begin to protest,) he radiated an aura of worry and support. George sighed before “begrudgingly” accepting his friend’s warmth and comfort. They stayed like that for awhile, before Dream finally spoke up again,

“You’re lucky I brought an extra, incase anything bad happened,” a shy chuckle escaped from the blank mask, “but you should probably feed the last two so that we don’t run out.”

George sighed, moving away from his friend. He didn’t want to think about what would have happened if he had killed one when there were only two. He didn’t want to imagine Dream having to travel so far again in such dangerous land. Of him also getting hurt. Noticing George’s change in demeanor, Dream softly handed him some wheat. George looked up. While he was only met with a stoic expression, he softly smiled. What a strange person.

George carefully approached the rest of the “herd”, who had huddled near the corner furthest from their executed brethren. He crouched and held out the wheat, beckoning to them while whispering sweet nothings and promises if they ate the wheat. Dream couldn’t help but start chuckling once more, causing George to glance back and glare (in turn which made Dream turn his head and hold his hands up in mock surrender.) After an hour of an awkward cramped position with several false movements form the herd, Dream sighed.

“You know you can like, actually approach them right? Just go outside the fence and circle around to them. I wouldn’t recommend approaching further from the inside incase they decide to charge at you,” Dream fiddled with the edge of his mask, watching as George cautiously made his way back out. Choosing not to respond, George circled around and offered the wheat to the cows once more.

George hesitated for a moment, before turning to Dream. “Is uh,” he flushed slightly, “do animals actually, you know, breed?” Dream paused for a moment before erupting into even more laughter, causing George’s flush to deepen, and offering a small shrug in response. George sighed.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Repopulation]


	9. Iron Man + Taking Aim

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jealousy is a temporary emotion. It's what you do with the regret afterwards that truly matters to a person.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow I’m really drained and tired. Depression is such a horrible thing that likes to splash against you in waves, dwindling your motivation and making you hate the things you love to do. Anyways, these next few chapters might be a bit all over the place (hopefully they aren’t too far off or anything) while I try to mentally bounce back. I wish life was easier. 
> 
> I promise I’ll try to tone down the word count again, but no promises. Really struggling to bounce between “wow this is too long” and “wow this is too short” while I’m writing. Trying my best! Will find motivation to continue one way or another! This is one of the few things I have going on in my life right now anyways, so I really don’t want to drop this project. Updates might become every couple of days, though. Sorry ahead of time if that happens :(.

It had been a few days since the “incident.” Nobody was allowed outside the boarders of the settlement unless they had a partner with them and told everyone else of their expedition. George was given the task of tending to the farm and keeping their animals (over time Sapnap and Dream had gone out and grabbed a couple chickens and pigs to go with the cows) in good supply. He knew he was just given the task so that he wouldn’t have to strain his body too much. The worried looks Bad and Sapnap shot him whenever he so much as wandered a few blocks away from where he was “suppose to be” confirmed it.

Still, George didn’t really mind. At least not at first. It did start to gnaw at him when he saw Sapnap and Dream, clad in full iron armour, approach him one day and basically tell him that they were going out to explore for awhile. He nervously agreed, wishing them the best as they waltzed off. It further bothered him when the duo didn’t return until half a day after the night had set. Neither seemed seriously injured, but George still worried about their adventures and travels (particularly how he wasn’t allowed to go with to ensure their safety with his own eyes. Dream said it was because he wasn’t properly trained, to which he argued back that neither was Sapnap. In the end, the argument led to nothing but wasted time and a bad mood.)

He knew that his friends were just worried about him, but he couldn’t help but feel a foreboding sense of uselessness as time passed. Everyone was bound to get hurt sometime and somehow, so why was he being punished for a mistake he already learned from? Especially with such a heavy burden for them all to bear. He knew they were luckier then many others trapped here were. Heaving a sigh, he finished up his duties in the farm before returning to his shared house. 

Dream and Sapnap had returned a few hours ago, stocking the chests with random goodies from across the land. A partially filled map was haphazardly tacked onto the wall with several marked areas signaling important resource points. George stared at it, unaware of his surroundings. He turned his head once he heard someone clearing their throat nearby. Of course it was Dream. George huffed at him yet couldn’t resist giving him a friendly, teasing smile despite the jealousy and discontent that currently resided within him. Dream just did that to a person.

“I see you guys are filling out the map. Good to know we’re making progress somewhere,” George stated, opting to hide his emotions behind a thin veil of disinterest. Dream sighed. He knew George well enough to tell what his tone of voice meant. Hoping to avoid conflict, Dream continued in a casual tone as well, feigning oblivious.

“Yeah, yesterday Sapnap and I found an abandoned mineshaft not too far from here. We haven’t really done much investigation into it, too many cave spiders, but it’s exciting to think of all the goodies that might be inside.”

George huffed, irked by Dream’s carelessness, “Not to mention how dangerous it would be? For what? Maybe a diamond or two? Wouldn’t it be easier if you brought more people along? The farm is already at its peak performance, I want to be useful too _Dream_.” George put emphasis on the name, hoping to add to his dramatic effect.

Though he couldn’t see his face, George could tell he struck a nerve. Dream immediately unfolded his arms and stalked over to the smaller male (who immediately shriveled at his friend’s approach.) “Fine, if you want to join us so bad, then prove it. We moved the training area to an area on a nearby mountain. Follow the torches, you’ll find it. Or will you get lost again?” The bitter tone in Dream’s voice caught George off guard. He knew his friend was just worried about him, but to go so far as to demean him like that was strange.

“I never said that I wanted to-” George barely got out the phrase before he was thrown in front of a crafting table with iron ingots precariously scattered around. A sharp “get ready” was all that he heard from his friend before the door slammed shut. George sighed. He truly was difficult when he wanted to be, which annoyingly seemed to be almost all the time. Especially lately.

The ingots he was given was the perfect amount to form a full set of iron armour. Once completed he waited a moment before putting it on, instead opting to fish around in the nearby chests for more material. He would need all the advantages he could get. He hoped he wouldn’t have to fight Dream at the very least, but who knew? Finding a worn bow, he hid it within the inner depths of his inventory. With a prideful huff, George equipped the armour. He wasn’t going to have his friend chide him further by leaving the base without “proper gear” (even though he knew he was mostly doing it out of spite.) 

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Iron Man]

As he walked outside, he noticed Badboyhalo and Skeppy scouting around, obviously looking for something. Giving them a short greeting, he asked for directions towards the new training area (something he would never admit to Dream-.) After being pointed the right way, he trod off. It wasn’t his business to know what his friends were up to. If they needed help they would have asked. As he gazed up to where his ‘mentor’ waited, he groaned. Half the journey was going to be a steep climb. Steeling his nerves (and mentally reminding himself to complain to Sapnap later) he began the ascent.

The new training grounds was much nicer then the temporary location they had used previously (which was then converted into the farm.) Though it was obviously still in construction, a miniature archer range had been set up using colour-coded flowers and logs. The sword-sparring area was in no condition to currently be used, though George could make out the outline of the various blocks that will consist of the arena (probably to ensure they could practice on every kind of terrain without disadvantage.) As such, George looked around before spotting his yellow friend.

Sitting on a log, Dream stared at George through his simple mask. Strange how sinister an emote for happiness could seem. The tension in the air lessened slightly when Dream spread open his arms and began to chuckle. George nervously fidgeting in spot, feeling slightly embarrassed for being the only one in armour. Dream pulled himself up and faced George. Though he couldn’t see his expression, George knew that the other man was wearing a smirk underneath his disguise.

“George, cmere,” Dream said like an excited puppy. George was taken aback slightly from his friend’s bipolarity, before realizing that Dream was always a mysterious person. One moment he would be laughing and making jokes and the next he would revert to a tone of dead-seriousness. It never really bothered George before (since he was usually on the receiving end of Dream’s “good” side,) but he slightly wondered if his friend had some kind of medical disorder for insanity or something. Or maybe he was the one who needed that diagnostic for allowing his heart to beat so fast when Dream impatiently grabbed onto his arm and dragged him the rest of the way to the semi-complete archery course.

“Watch this.” Dream pulled out a bow and began to pull the string back. An arrow from his inventory immediately fazed into existence and notched itself perfectly into the weapon, before being fired as Dream let go. Flying true, the arrow lodged itself into the dirt next to a log with a deep thud. Dream immediately turned to George, radiating a childish excitement that made George laugh. He was adorable when he was trying to show off. Noticing the laughter, Dream gave a prideful huff and began chuckling as well, allowing George the opportunity to relax. 

“Wow, nice shot _Dream_ ,” George said in a tone that was half truthful and half joking. He couldn’t let Dream’s ego get too large, after all. He also loved to put an emphasis on his friend’s name, though he couldn’t quite tell why. Dream laughed a bit before replying,

“Yeah well at least I can shoot. You probably would end up firing the arrow off the cliff!” Dream doubled into his tea-kettle wheeze as George began to indignantly protest.

“Fine, I’ll show you,” George said mockingly, a grin plastered to his face. He really missed hanging out with his friend like this. All that was absent was Sapnap’s indecent comments and jokes to truly top it all off. Dream backed away in amusement, letting George grab the bow he had been using. Heaving a sigh, George took aim. Dream immediately began laughing even harder, causing George to pause and look over, now slightly confused and embarrassed. “What is wrong with you?”

“You-you _idiot_ , you don’t have any arrows do you?” Dream cackled as George felt a blush take hold. He had almost forgotten. Dream threw him a spare arrow and George returned to his position near a line marked with flowers. Pulling back, he noticed Dream’s laughter had died down slightly as he started to watch him. George flushed at the attention. Pride was going to be the death of him, he swore to himself silently as he took aim. The arrow cut through the air like a knife. George turned around to Dream, who had now returned to an aura of professionalism. 

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Taking Aim]

“Look Dream! I did it! I managed to hit somethin-” George’s excited ramblings was cut off by Dream’s light laughter.

“George you hit the closest log possible.”

“Well, yeah, but at least it’s something isn’t it?” George said in the tone of a teenager trying to show off a good grade for a test despite the parent not being overly interested, “I’m sure with enough training I’ll become better. Just _please_ let me go with you and Sapnap when you guys go out on adventures. I want to help!”

Dream stayed silent for a bit, making George wonder if he had crossed any invisible boundaries. Finally he sighed, “George, you know I’m only trying to keep you safe, right?”

Not allowing Dream to continue, George immediately butted in, “But Dream, we’re all here. Willingly. We all have to work together. I want to keep all of you guys safe too, but how can I do that when you all ahead out and do dangerous things without me?”

“George, the last time you went out you nearly _died_ -”

“Yeah but that was an accident! I made my way to you guys all on my own,” George continued while Dream tried to speak up and protest that they offered to pick him up, “and I think I deserve to be apart of the adventure too. You guys are important to me. It’s not fair when you all get to do the hard work while I sit and tend to cows.” He opted not to mention BadBoyHalo or Skeppy, since he wasn’t really sure what they did-. However, he assumed they were also being allowed to do more dangerous things than he was.

Dream sighed. He knew he wasn’t going to get anywhere in this conversation. He looked at George, glad that his mask hid any sort of the emotion that was currently turmoiling within him. Numbers was safety, and they really did need all the help they could get. Plus, training George would help for a situation if he ever found himself stranded again (though Dream promised himself he wouldn’t let that happen, who knew what the world had in store?) Unable to resist the annoying yet adorable puppy-eyed man, Dream relented.

“I’ll think about it.”


	10. When Pigs Fly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some days you have to take apart the puzzle in order to put it back together again later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry for such a late update guys. I write this for fun on the side, so it has to come second in comparison to life stuff, so please don’t kill me too harshly. I’ve also noticed my writing tends to be “better” when I write when I want to write and not trying to constantly force myself to write. A lot has been going on in life right now and its gotten to the point where I have to write chapters the day-of rather then have some ready ahead of time. Hopefully the longer lengths make up for it though! 
> 
> Second single-achievement chapter my guys! Hooray. I’m trying to add these in generously around the fic, making sure they’re not too far apart or close together (unless it’s a major event,) Now, you may be going “this achievement is not cool, why is it worthy of a single chapter?” And to that I say “shut up my brain has fluffy ideas and I am trash at writing-." I love you all equally! Enjoy flying pigs :D.
> 
> I also just realized my “halfway point” is lowkey 30 chapters in, so like- y'all are in for a long ride. Sorry not sorry-. Speaking of ride, I don’t really want to mention many more youtubers besides the main Dream Team squad (+BBH and Skeppy) mostly because I feel like it might muddle up the story, and I don’t know the slightest thing about Tommy or Eret and stuff-. Still, I have been watching more Technoblade lately and he seems like he’d be a fun character to introduce more eventually. You’ll all see how it goes ;).

George was content. Well, as content as he could be considering he spent hours every day abusing his body to the point where he could hardly move and his friends were at a constant risk of dying, After the day on the archery range, Dream had agreed to let George practice again (though he wasn’t allowed on any expeditions until either he or Sapnap said he was ready.) While this term was annoying, George was glad that his friends were starting to put more faith in him again. Sure he was stupid, but at least he was trying to get better.

On the days when Dream and Sapnap were gone, George would go down and visit Bad and Skeppy. The two got along in a way George didn’t quite understand but didn’t dare to question. While Bad was soft and sweet, Skeppy was sharp and wild. Their contradictions led to frequent bickering over small things that always resulted in them making it up moments later. Sometimes George would just leave again and neither would be aware he had been there in the first place. Still, he enjoyed the two’s presence (even though they pulled at his heart and reminded him of his relationship with Dream for some odd reason.)

One day, during his training on the freshly finished course (well the basic one, at least, Dream wanted to create his own personal area even higher up the mountain) Sapnap approached him. At first he watched from afar, leaving the two in comfortable silence. After a few more strokes of George’s sword, Sapnap decided to speak.

“Your posture is wrong,” he stated simply. When George huffed and looked over, Sapnap offered a shrug in response. “What? It’s true. You gotta follow through  _ all the way _ otherwise the mob can easily just jump out of the way.”

“I’m not stupid Sapnap, mobs don’t dodge. Besides, it’s not like you guys are suddenly experts at sword fighting. We’ve all been here the same amount of time.”

Sapnap sighed, faking irritation, “But George, you don’t realize something.”

“What?”

“We have experience. Who do you think goes out and discovers vast lands around us?” Sapnap grinned, knowing he was prodding George’s buttons. He loved to entice “arguments” (really just friendly bickering) from his friends. It offered comedic relief in such a gloom atmosphere.

“Shut up Sapnap, I bet you’re just bad.”

“Bad?” A scoff, “You’re the one who’s bad. At least I can hold a sword!”

Their conversation bounced back and forth for awhile, with both ending up laughing mid-argument, deterring but not preventing them from continuing. It wasn’t until sunset that they finally calmed back down, lapsing back into silence. George glanced down and noticed his hunger bar had dropped quite a bit. Calling it a day, he waved towards Sapnap.

“Let’s go Sapnap, it’s getting late.” Sapnap’s eye immediately brightened as he sprinted down the mountain, shouting a quick “last one down is a simp!” as he threw his weight over the rocks. Despite knowing he was already at a massive disadvantage, George grinned. His friend’s antics always cheered him up. Dashing down the slopes, George stumbled back to their house. Sapnap spent no time rubbing his victory in George’s face (who just waved him away with a smile.) The two exchanged a few more words before heading back towards the bedroom.

The house had been decorated more since his arrival. During the time George wasn’t training, he scoured the chests for wood and crafting materials to decorate the place with. Currently it was a two-story oak building with a smooth stone foundation. Using the sheep from the farm (a recent addition to their animal collection) he managed to craft carpet to adorn the interior with. Even if they all died, at least they’d die in style.

Dream was already in his bed, idly playing with a wooden sword that was laying nearby. Seeing his friends, he waved and shouted out their names (a custom they’ve all adapted.) George groaned. He wished he was as attractive as Dream was. It wasn’t fair that someone could . Recently George had admitted to himself that he was jealous of his best friend. However, he pawned this jealous off to him just wishing he was like him rather than anything truly romantic. His thoughts about Dream’s attractiveness was solely due to him wishing he had the same build and rough hands, right? And the thoughts about late night talks and touches could be explained away if he thought hard enough, he was sure about it.

“GEORGE, STOP STARING AT DREAM, YOU SIMP AND GET IN BEDDDD,” Sapnap’s friendly yell snapped George back into reality. Dream immediately burst out laughing, and George chuckled along awkwardly as well as he went to his bed. He retorted with a quiet “no I’m not” before turning in for the night.

When he woke up, Sapnap and Dream were nearby discussing something. Figuring it was just plans for their next adventure, George began to drag his body up. He had training to do. Upon noticing George’s awakened state, however, his two friends quickly beckoned him over. Curious, he obliged. They were pondering over a specific area on the map, marked but not discovered. Dream excitedly looked up and George and began loudly exclaiming what was going on.

“GEORGE! YOU’RE NEVER GOING TO BELIEVE IT. TECHNOBLADE IS HERE. LIKE, ACTUALLY HERE. YESTERDAY WHILE WE WERE OUT EXPLORING WE FOUND A MARKER DEEP INTO THE FOREST THAT SAID “To whoever finds this: Here’s our coords, nerds. -The Blade” AND IT MARKS A LOCATION A COUPLE THOUSAND BLOCKS FROM HERE.” Dream acted like an excited puppy, happy to have found more strong comrades for their cause. He gave George a moment to process what was said before he continued, “DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS? WE COULD ALL MEET UP AND FORM A POWER ALLIANCE. WE’D BE UNSTOPPABLE.”

George stepped back. His friend’s excitement was a burst of energy that his tired body was not yet prepared to comprehend or intake. Technoblade? Here? He supposed it made sense, since he was one of the best Minecraft players to ever exist. Having him in a combined base would be greatly beneficial. George looked down again at the map and winced. The thousands of block journey would require them to cut through the dense forest and enter unexplored territory for miles before even seeing their destination. Still, Dream was adamant.

“I know that we haven’t really taken in the territory yet, but we can scout it out and decide the best course of action from there. Scouting should be a 2 day expedition for the way there and back. George, I need you to stay here with me. Sapnap, I’m trusting you and Bad to take this map and record the unexplored lands and come  _ right back _ . If you’re not back in two and a half days, we’re coming to look for you.”

Sapnap immediately began to lightly protest, proclaiming that the journey would be boring and brutal and jokingly going “if I die, it’s on you man” (which he quickly took back after seeing the distressed look that George shot him and noticing the slouch Dream gave.) With a sigh, he left to prepare his things and talk to Bad. George chuckled and wished him luck (only half jokingly, as per usual.) A gnawing feeling bloomed in his stomach at the thought of Sapnap and Bad going on their own, but he also knew Dream must have other just as important plans or else he wouldn’t dare send his friends off on their own.

Just as he was getting lost in thought, Dream turned to him. “George, you’ve been doing a lot of training recently, and while I’m proud, I sadly must proclaim that you’re now stuck with me for the next few days,” Dream was unable to stop himself from adding in his signature sarcastic jokes. “We’re heading out the opposite direction of the others in order to put up signs of our own. I sent Skeppy out earlier to build a different settlement nearby for randoms to join. If we can, I want to save and shelter people, but I don’t want them in our main base, understood?”

George was impressed. His friend was a great leader and planner, to the point where it made him slightly question the other. How could someone so mischievous be so terrifying, commanding, adorable, and amazing all within 5 seconds? He chuckled lightly to himself, unaware of how bad his infatuation was becoming. His friend truly was something else.

Collecting the resources necessary to maintain life a few days away from their base of operations (Two armour sets, a stack of steak to split between them, and  _ many  _ torches) they headed off into the mountain-y impasse. They made a lot of small talk while occasionally stopping to put up pamphlets that gave crude directions to what George assumed was the location of the public base. As they wandered, they built temporary shelters (a task that took half an hour each) to support individuals on the journey (a thought which made George anxious. He was never a fan of random people.) 

Finally, they made a stop near the end of the mountains. Before them was a river, separating them from the deserted world George had crawled out of (a thought that made him subconsciously shudder.) Dream sighed, staring up at the dying sun. They had mostly looped around the mountain range (noting that their surroundings was: a desert to the east, forest to the west, ocean to the north, and unknown to the south) pasting their coordinates for others to find. Strength in numbers and all that. George huffed. The sunset was as dull in colour as the rest of his world, so it wasn’t much of an interest to him. Blue was much nicer.

Dream walked over to him, seemingly unfazed by all the exercise they had just endured. George envied it. How could his friend be seemingly so perfect in every aspect? It wasn’t fair. They stayed in silence for awhile, before turning in towards a small crack in the mountain that would be their nightly base. Using hay bales (they had used all their wool for string earlier and their sheep weren’t ready to be sheered, so beds were not an option) they fell into the darkness of sleep.

In the morning, George woke up to the sound of pigs roaming nearby. A glance over to Dream signaled that they were both awake. Carefully rising from his position, Dream motioned to his mask in a signal to “hush.” Confused, George watched his friend. The other hopped off the hay and created an entrance to the outside world. Looking out, he seemed to have spotted the herd of pigs. George watched with annoyed curiosity (primarily because he wanted to know what was going on and hated when his friends forced him to wait.) 

After a moment, Dream pulled out a saddle. A wicked glint flashed through his eyes as he stalked outside. Making sure to be quiet (though quietly chuckling as he began to think about what his friend planned to do) George followed him. He watched as Dream carefully approached a pig that was unaware of the larger presence. Dream lurched forward. George laugh-huffed incredulously. He couldn’t be serious, could he? The pig squealed as it was grabbed and forced into a saddle.

Immediately Dream beckoned to George, who only stared back in response. Giving an irritated huff, Dream picked up the pig (who began furiously squealing in exchange.) He strutted over to George and set the poor creature down, making sure it didn’t wiggle too much. George raised an eyebrow. There was no way he was getting on that thing. 

“GEORGE, GET ON IT,” Dream exclaimed in an annoyed tone, hoping to encourage his friend into getting on the beast. George continued to stare skeptically before Dream briefly let go of the creature in order to throw his friend on. Immediately the pig took off, dragging George with it. He screamed. Not use to the strange weight on its back, the pig hurdled itself too close to a ledge and instantly tipped over, causing George to yell louder as the pair plummeted a few feet below.

  
  


GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement  [When Pigs Fly]

  
  


Dream rushed over to the edge and glanced down. George was sprawled across the pig with the ladder indignantly oinking in pain. After confirming that George wasn’t seriously injured, Dream began wheezing in laughter and descended safely down with them. George glared incredulously. He yelled out a sharp “DREAM” out of habit, which only made his friend laugh even harder. Hopping off the hog, who immediately turned around and tried to eat his pants (forcing George to kill it,) he turned to his seemingly dying friend. 

“I can’t believe you. I’m never going out with you again,” the hidden innuendo was staple to their jokes, but still made George’s heart flutter at the wording.

Dream only laughed, “So I guess you’re only going to come with me again when pigs fly-.” Immediately he slouched down as his body desperately gasped for air while George groaned at the horrendous joke. He began the trek back home, opting to leave Dream behind while he was dying. He would catch up eventually. 


	11. Archer + DIAMONDS!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adventure is needed in order to advance, though often the path is dangerous and untraveled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise updates will not be longer than a week max. I’m trying to do them when I can but also want to. Low-key usually it’s during classes because that’s the only time I can focus on doing things other than sleeping and playing Among Us/Terraria-. Also depression is a bastard that wants to drag me into the abyssal hell of in-productivity and self hate so that’s great. My little “this is what happens in this chapter” thing just said “Abandoned mineshaft is kind of spooky, amiright” and I know that’s not really important but I think some of you would laugh at my dry humour so I’ll keep including what notes I made for myself here (unless they actually spoil something.) Usually they’re only a sentence anyways because I don’t know what a rough draft is :). Anyways, being tied down by Chemistry and low-key gay-matters is really siphoning my time, but I shall not give up!! This shall become complete eventually!
> 
> Hopefully the extra length somewhat helps make up for the slower update schedule. I love you all!

They were currently standing outside the abandoned mineshaft Sapnap and Dream had dug up weeks before. George glanced down the abyssal hallway, the dank cave smell infesting his nostrils at the same time that skittering sounds filled his head. Cave spiders did not sound appealing. Dream threw a torch into the gloom, highlighting the broken-up wooden interior with cobwebs littering every corner. Uneven minecart tracks led the rest of the way into the darkness. 

Sapnap hopped down silently, not wanting to attract unwanted attention from any mobs that may lurk below. Life was scary when you know that most mobs can hear you. Dream followed once Sapnap had successfully placed a few torches in the surrounding area. He beckoned upwards. George sighed. How did he let himself get dragged into this situation? After hearing an impatient huff, George leapt down into his friend’s arms. 

As the dust parted where they walked, George found himself jumping at every slight noise. It got to the point that Dream offered to be in the back so that George could feel more secure about his surroundings (something that he gracefully accepted.) It wasn’t long before the inhabitants of the mineshaft took note of them. At first it was just the occasional cave spider (they would surround the beast so the likelihood of being bit lessened significantly. Soon it became skeletons hidden around corners and lurking in the holes leading out to a ravine. 

Sapnap got hit by an arrow, forcing them to temporarily retreat in order to recover and decide how to continue. They debated a bit before Dream agreed to take the lead (forcing George to go in the back once more in order to protect Sapnap) and started to put walls around them and fill any holes they came across ahead of time. They made extra sure to place as many torches as possible without being too lenient with their supply. Didn’t want to turn around and have a zombie catch them off guard after all. 

Coming across an intersection, they blocked off all future ways before settling down to formulate a plan. At this rate they would be here for ages, but splitting up and getting caught by a cave spider was an easy death wish (not mentioning the place was crawling with the things enough already, even with the three of them together.) Dream immediately perked up and declared that he would be able to scavenge one of the paths on his own, urging the already-arguing Sapnap and George into going together down another path. After a fierce “we don’t have time for this” George and Sapnap begrudgingly complied (with the former saying that he would die just to spite him.)

They opted to ignore the 3rd route and save it for a later expedition. Currently they just needed to cover enough ground to map the place out and make it safe enough to travel into (as well as loot it for the potential of diamonds, the true reason they were all there.) Breaking through their meager dirt boundary, Sapnap and George set off down the right. Immediately their ears were pounded with distant groans and skittering, signalling that mobs have already started appearing. 

Sapnap motioned to his mouth for silence as they neared the corner (in which George returned with an eyeroll, considering they were already being quiet enough.) His friend was always a comedian even when threatened with death. Another split path. The two whispered quietly to each other on which way would be the best to go down, before Sapnap suddenly screeched “George! Run!”

Immediately George’s fight or flight instinct kicked in as he also started screaming (though he didn’t know why yet) and running down with Sapnap. After a couple paces they reached a dead-end, the slick cavern walls taunting them from escape. George turned around. A slouched, green-patterned behemoth was slowly approaching them without much noise. Creeper. Sapnap covered George’s mouth (a gesture to silence his yelling before more mobs came) and quickly looked around for potential escape routes.

While Sapnap was busy trying to find a way out (or at least to hide,) George scanned his inventory for his weapons. Melee was surely going to result in an explosion that, if it didn’t kill them, would leave them extremely vulnerable to other mobs and attacks. His gaze quickly fixated on the bow that teased his hotbar. He had brought it just incase (after learning more about archery the days following Dream’s haphazard instructions) along with a handful of arrows. Now was better than never. He took it out and steadily pulled back the string.

Sapnap turned around and looked at him, groaning. “Dude, you had that the whole time? If you miss I’m going to actually strangle you. Here, give me it,” George laughed and teasingly held the bow out of Sapnap’s reach, before actually giving him an annoyed look that caused the other to back off. The threat of exploding was rather real. The creeper was slow moving and seemed confused. They had assumed that this was due to their clothing blending in with the stone wall behind them (creeper vision seemed to be a green-tinted warped version of their vision, making it easy to avoid them if you just hid among the grass.) Taking aim, George fired.

A hiss in response let him know that he had hit his mark. Immediately the beast started barreling towards them, planning to explode. Sapnap began panicking and mining away, trying to build a small shelter in the case of explosion. Immediately George began rapidly firing arrows, causing echoing thuds as most completely missed their mark. With a final tug as the beast began to flash, George hit it dead-on. The beast vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving behind a tiny crater where it stood. George released a sigh of relief. They really needed a better game plan when it came to creepers.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Archer]

Sapnap hopped out of his small hole (a sight that George took slight offense to, knowing his friend semi-willingly abandoned him to his fate) and began chuckling nervously. The two took a moment to rest before silently continuing on their journey. Backtracking through where they ran, they came across a minecart with a chest inside. Immediately the pair perked up, excited to find something worthwhile.

A simple saddle and a few ores were the only thing to note inside the abandoned storage unit. Sapnap gave George a slight shrug and grin. It was better then nothing, he guessed. The pair continued their trek through the cobweb-filled area. Food was getting low, and torch supply was even lower, so they supposed they would only travel a few more feet before returning and coming back later. George’s mind flashed back to Dream. While he was sure his friend was fine (he was kind of scared of the skills his friend picked up on,) he couldn’t help but worry about all the scenarios that could have happened. Skeletons hiding in the walls, waiting for their time to strike. Creepers on their silent legs, wandering aimlessly in the halls with the ability to blow up at a moments notice.

Sapnap nudged him, shaking him out of his thoughts. Returning it with a grateful and confused smile, he looked towards where his friend was pointing. In the middle of a thick web was a chest. Surrounding the chest was a small herd of three cave spiders, all which seemed to be keenly aware of the trespassers. George hesitated, ready to head back, before seeing Sapnap unsheath his iron sword. His friend’s greed would be the death of them both, he pondered. Opting to cover his friend, he pulled out his bow. Keeping the other two spiders off of Sapnap would be a challenge considering he only had seven arrows left.

His friend slouched down, creeping closer to the spiders. Immediately they entered a defensive posture, threatening to strike if he got too close. Apparently cave spiders were territorial. He pulled back the bow and took aim at the spider that was second closest to his friend. The arrow was released the moment he saw Sapnap lunge from the peripheral of his vision. Was it the smartest move? Hell no. Yet there they were, trying to fight a trio of cave spiders with a sword and bow in unfamiliar territory.

Luckily Sapnap’s swing had been strong enough to severe the first spider in half, but George’s arrow only managed to delay the second spider before it pounced. Thinking quickly, Sapnap lunged backwards as the beast struck. Spiders are quicker. His leg was immediately chomped down on by the creature’s thick yet sharp fangs, poison immediately making itself a known effect. George yelled, before rushing forward with his sword. He swung without thinking, cutting some legs off of the third spider which had been curiously approaching during the commotion. 

The third beast lurched backwards, stumbling off-center without the use of half of its legs. The second spider released its prey and, after determining Sapnap was no longer a current threat, started threatening George with its stance. George lunged through the air, throwing his sword at the spider. Its instincts made it strike, allowing the sword to plunge into its head. Immediately it poofed. Huffing, he grabbed his sword again before turning around and finishing off the last of the threats.

Sapnap was his first priority, and he turned to his friend who was laying painfully on the ground. The bite was deep and George could visibly see the green poison course through Sapnap’s blood (which remained in the skin, at least saving them from a bloody mess.) Immediately he offered the other his food. Propping Sapnap up against the wall, George blocked them in to ensure no unwanted visitors would attack them when checking out the commotion. Poison was not an effect they’ve had to deal with yet, so they were unsure if the poison would stop at half-a-heart or if it would continue until either death or a cure was reached. George pursed his lips.

“Hey, Sapnap, it’ll be okay,” George’s weary tone did nothing to help the gloomy atmosphere, yet Sapnap smiled nonetheless. 

“Yeah, I’m fine. A little spider bite won’t kill me! IT WON’T KILL ME!” Sapnap immediately fell faint for a few minutes after his small outburst, worrying George further. Thinking quickly, he pulled out a bucket of milk that he had stored just incase (something that Dream had been adamant he fill with water instead incase of any major drops) they wanted something more flavourful to drink. He offered it to Sapnap, who graciously accepted the offer. 

As the poison faded from Sapnap’s blood, he began to talk more and more, aware of their safe location. George grinned off and on, half worried for his friend but also glad that he was feeling well enough to speak. He was worried that Sapnap’s inability to walk would linger for a few days, making it impossible for them to travel unless Dream wandered in or something happened. Sapnap motioned with his head for George’s attention.

“Hey, so what’s even in that chest? I swear if we did all this work for another saddle I’m going to actually lose it,” Sapnap’s comedic tone was interrupted by a sharp inhale of pain as his body tried to regenerate itself. Yeah, they definitely weren’t going to be able to go anywhere fast. Even the journey home would be rough. Turning his attention to the chest, George teasingly walked over.

“Wouldn’t you like to know~?” He began laughing as Sapnap huffed and rolled his eyes. Unlatching the box, he gazed at its contents. Immediately he threw out a saddle (causing Sapnap to audibly groan) and a few gold nuggets that lingered near the surface. Looking deeper, a particular shine caught his eye. George gasped, causing Sapnap to glance over at him curiously.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [DIAMONDS!]


	12. Diamonds to You! + Pork Chop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> People are like candles. We burn brighter for certain people and don't burn at all for others. Some people are without a candle and lost in the darkness, requiring the help of a bright candle to keep them company. The issue is, most of the time it's merely conditional, plunging the afflicted back into the eternal darkness until the next candle comes by and shares some of their light while secretly siphoning the soul of those they claim to save.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wooo more words and story. Totally not writing this to distract myself from my essays, haha-. Anyways, this chapter’s note was just “Here is a diamond, here is a pork chop. Law of equivalent exchange.” But then I wrote the first few paragraphs and got myself stuck in a way where I didn’t know what to do for awhile lmao. I learned that it’s easier to find motivation to write when I don’t have 15 chemistry assignments eating me alive, and also if I come to a part in my story where I don’t know how to continue but I know how I want to end, it’s easier to write the ending first and then come back and write the middle section. What a strange phenomenon.
> 
> I’ve been trying to show George’s colourblindness as well whenever I mention colour, but usually that’s just yellow (he didn’t really have a concept of the word “brown” until his colourblind glasses video I’m pretty sure.) Just throwing things against the wall to see what sticks and what doesn’t.

It had taken a few hours before Dream finally dug them out of their small enclosed space, worry etched into his posture. Upon seeing Sapnap, he immediately shouted out and rushed over to his friend. George helped him carry Sapnap back out of the mineshaft (a task that took several breaks and hours to complete.) By the time they arrived outside, a full two days had already passed. They carefully escorted Sapnap back home (ensuring he didn’t take any more damage due to his low heart capacity currently.) Safety. 

Forcing Sapnap to rest was a depressing event, especially since they were already low on people to do tasks already. Dream made the executive decision to let Sapnap rest and then tend to the farm for a week to ensure he came back to health in full. George watched. The diamonds were a great find, but there were only three of them. When he showed them to Dream, the other immediately straightened up and had George bring the gemstones into a chest tucked away in a far corner. They needed to be careful about how they used them.

Walking around the place, George nervously followed Dream. They hadn’t set aside an agenda today, so he wasn’t too sure on what to do. Noticing his stalker, Dream began to chuckle and slowed down a bit so the pair could walk together. Though he didn’t know where they were going, George happily trotted along with his friend, trusting him to keep them both safe. After doing a few loops around the settlement (interacting briefly with Skeppy, who was mischievously hiding all of Bad’s items in an underground chest as a “troll”) the duo headed towards the farm. It wasn’t long before Dream took George’s arm and dragged him down a freshly-made path.

Confusion embedded itself into George’s eyes, as he allowed himself to be dragged along while offering a chuckle at his friend’s antics. It wasn’t long before the squealing of pigs filled his ears, leading to more confusion. Posing himself on one of the fences, Dream dramatically opened his arms and faced George, showcasing the mass amount of pigs behind him. George laughed, still confused yet impressed at the same time.

Dream sighed, noting George’s lack of understanding. “Look at how _many_ there are George! We can actually have some decent food. Don’t get me wrong, I love steak too but this is something _different_.” Dream dramatically opened a chest and pulled out some pre-cooked pork chops, turning towards George. He laughed and tried to approach, but Dream was quick to horde all of the food to himself. With a friendly groan, George crossed his arms and “glared” at his friend. The other laughed and stubbornly latched onto the food, keeping it visible in effort to persuade George into trying to take it from him. Immediately George began to whine, hoping to deter his friend’s mocking ideas. He began to reach for the food.

Dream teasingly held the pork chops out of reach, causing George to shrill out a “Dream”. Dream tisked, as if scolding a rambunctious child. “If you want the pork chop it’ll cost a total of two diamonds,” his mocking demeanor made George furrow his brows in discontent. Storming away, he stalked back towards the “hidden” chest. Quickly he snatched some of the diamonds, returning to see his friend watching in what he assumed was amusement (gods he hated that mask sometimes.)

In one hand he stuck out the diamonds (being careful to remain a tight grip on them just incase Dream decided to take them as another practical joke) while his other hand grasped at the air in signal of wanting the pork chop. He’d be damned if he was going to let Dream mock him so easily. Tilting his head, Dream stared at his companion. As George began to feel awkward from the silence, a wheezing laugh filled the air. 

“God George, you’re so _stubborn_.” He threw the pork chops a few feet to the side (which George immediately dived for) and strutted over. Holding his prize high above his head, George looked triumphantly to Dream. His friend held out his hand, obviously prepared to take the diamonds if they weren’t willingly given (Dream was always one to take matters into his own hands with little regard to patience and trust.) With a huff and eye-roll, George smiled as he threw the diamonds to his friend. He knew they were just going to go right back into the box, but the little games he and his friends played were always too fun to pass up, even if it risked losing valuable material in the process.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Diamonds to You!]

He began to laugh as Dream took on a curious position, obviously pretending to be a gem expert. Dream attempted to take on a sophisticated voice, “Ah yes, the rarest of diamonds. Worth a meager two pork chops.” The lack of sense to the comment only made George giggle more. His friend was always an interesting person. After awhile of minor back and forth banter, Dream trodded off to put the diamonds away once more (though he said it in a way that made it sounds as if he was keeping them, if only to make George roll his eyes again while he laughed.)

Now alone with his prize, George glanced at the pork chop he had “bought.” While he wasn’t sure if there was any nutritional deficiency by them only really eating steaks and crops every day, his mouth watered at the thought of a new flavour. Not bothering to wait, he downed the meat in what felt like a single swallow. At least it was cooked.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Pork Chop]

As his mouth and stomach relished in the delight of new food, BadBoyHalo timidly turned around the corner. George grinned and beckoned his friend over. It had been awhile since they last chatted. The sweet yet edgy-looking figure walked over, giving an excitedly friendly wave as he approached. George leaned back, looking up to the sun. Bad followed suit, falling to the ground with a soft “plop.”

“Hey George, how have you been?” Bad’s childish tone made George smile. Purity was one thing he was not really use to, yet it fit Bad perfectly. A nice change of pace.

“I’ve been alright, trying not to die, y’know. Whatta ‘bout you?” George glanced over at his friend, noting the relax yet slightly-on-edge posture they both shared. One was never truly safe.

“Well, me and Skeppy have been put in charge of finding more people to build a community around. We built a couple of shelters, and there were more then enough times I had to stop Skeppy from burning the houses down, but we did manage to get a few people to find us. I wish I could bake them all muffins,” Bad recited the words as nonchalantly, obviously tired yet unwilling to sleep until he knew everything was in proper working order.

George hummed. He had known people were coming in, but he hadn’t really found the time to go visit the place himself. It wasn’t something for him to handle. He turned back to the sky, watching as bleak colours slowly overtook the beautiful blue. Sometimes when he was out wandering he would find Bad in the farm, trying to figure out if he could bake muffins despite it technically being “Minecraft”. George chuckled slightly at the thought, causing Bad to look over at him in a curious manner.

“Bad, you realize that your muffin plan is never going to work, right? It’s Minecraft. Make a cake if you want them to have sweets.”

“Well yeah, but I think it’s still a nice little project to try out on the side. Besides, what if I do make muffins? Not only would you be praising me and going ‘Oh Bad, you’re so amazing, I want one of those muffins’ but it would also mean we could theoretically craft things that are considered not part of the game,” Bad’s tone shifted between playful and semi-serious, though they both knew it was a false hope. 

“Whatever. If you do manage to make muffins then, do I get the first one?” George turned to his friend, giving off his best ‘puppy-dog eyes’ while struggling not to laugh.

The other couldn’t help but giggle as he pondered, “Well, I think I would get the first one. Then Skeppy because even though he is a dunder-head, he’s a good potato. But after that then sure!” 

George groaned at his low placement, yet still smiled brightly at their banter. It was nice to have time unbothered by the touch of death or threat of work. Soon the night spilled over, conquering the last lights of day. Bad stood, offering a hand out for George. As they got up, Dream poked his head out of the house and screamed out a friendly, “GUYS IT’S LATE, WE SHOULD BE IN BED.” The two turned to each other and laughed before jogging off into their different directions. George grinned as he watched Dream hold the door open for him, before conveniently stopping right outside.

“Ladies first,” he motioned, offering to hold the door for Dream instead. Dream laughed, threatening on a wheeze, before ushering them both inside. Joining Sapnap in their room, the trio tucked in for the night. Tomorrow should be a productive day. The soft screeches of various mobs echoed throughout the lands.


	13. Enchanter + Librarian

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Safety is a feeble construct. Sometimes the people who are most at risk are the ones who worry more about those who have no risk to them at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Low-key have just been watching Visage twitch streams instead of getting any work done and then had to do 10 assignments for Chemistry at like 10p.m. on a Sunday. Anyways, I hope you guys had an amazing Hallo's Eve! We didn't really get trick-or-treaters down here, but it was fun to have candy and just vibe for the spooky season. Totally not banking on the fact that longer chapters might redeem my soul for my poor update time choices B).
> 
> Totally not using writing as a venting or coping mechanism. That’s totally not why my last chapter summary was so edgy-. Trying to balance out life on top of school on top of relationships with people is a mental task my feeble brain cell is not happy to handle. Yet here I am! I hope you guys enjoy these updates, even though they’re kind of all over the place. I figured it was better to write and post it rather then try and wait for the “smoothest most perfect” kind of thing. As they say, something is better than nothing. I hope y'all are having a fantastic day.

Life was simple. They would rotate around jobs and do various tasks in order to maintain upkeep around the house. Their farm was tremendous and offered an endless supply of food, allowing them to comfortable live in their house for the rest of their lives if they wanted. Still, there was tension. The way Dream paced the room, constantly in thought and trying to find time to set aside expeditions (he was much more weary of where everyone went and with who, after Sapnap had to set aside a week to recover and still walked with a slight limp) in order to progress. In the way that Sapnap constantly looked out to the forest, deep in thoughts that only he knew of. How George would always find himself wandering to where his friends were in order to ensure they were all safe and he wasn’t alone.

While they were pretty sure the amount of player deaths had lessened (simply since there were less players to kill,) everyone still felt as if no real progress was being made. It wasn’t until, after coming out of a room surrounded in oak parchment, Dream declared he was going into the desert in order to find lava and craft obsidian. Everyone was shocked, nervously looking around to see who would stand up to the statement. George and Sapnap spoke at the same time. Both began arguing, claiming that someone else go with him while he searched, since the desert had a higher spawn rate of mobs and hidden sinkholes that collapsed under foot.

Dream waved away their worries, stating that he would go each day and return every night so he didn’t have to deal with the mass amount of mobs. Still skeptical, the trio fought over what was to be done. Finally, Sapnap and George begrudgingly yielded to the unwavering determination Dream always emitted. The pair weren’t happy, but they also weren’t going to change the third’s mind. Using the few diamonds they had in the chest from George and Sapnap’s spider adventure, Dream crafted a diamond pickaxe.

Reflecting it in the light, he proudly showed off his new tool. George only huffed in response while Sapnap gave a discontent smile. Dream sighed before heading out. They watched their mask-clad friend until he was out of sight, beyond the walls of their small sanctuary and into the harsh world of monsters and death. The sun was hot.

Sapnap turned to him, obviously irked at their comrade’s lack of self preservation. “He’s such a moron. Can you believe him George? God he’s just,” Sapnap fumbled with his words, “he’s just _stupid_.” George gave the other an abrupt chuckle and agreed. Dream was skilled, but going out alone was always a stupid idea, even if it was daylight out.

“Let’s go look at his stuff,” Sapnap said mischievously, dragging George along with him. While George considered complaining, his curiosity was truly a beast to be reckoned with. They slowly approached a small room. Dream’s personal area. While neither George nor Sapnap had an area dedicated to them, Dream preferred to keep his brooding to himself until he fleshed out his ideas for sharing. 

Inside they found several haphazardly scattered notes and horrifically drawn maps along with what they assumed were landmarks. There wasn’t much in terms of organization, yet the pair was able to find his most recent notes due to them being strewn at the top of the messy pile. Reading through the nearly-illegible notes was taxing. Several times they joked around with each other, pointing out different words and comedically questioning what it was suppose to be.

Finally they had a general grasp of what they assumed was Dream’s plan. He wanted to find a lava pool in the desert and pour a water source into it, transforming the entire thing into obsidian in order to safely excavate it. From there he would mine the amount needed for a portal and enchantment table, along with any extra, then return to their home with the material in order to further their progress in the game. The plan then goes into detail on how they would need to find more diamonds, further stalling the process. Dream talks about how he planned to go find diamonds on his own in the following days. 

Processing this, Sapnap and George looked at each other. They both mentally agreed that they would go and get the diamonds while Dream was gone, ensuring their friend didn’t exhaust himself by trying to burden every task. George turned around and left. Sapnap followed. The pair continuously shot childish glances at each other, filled with adrenaline from feeling as if they were “disobeying” an authority. It was for a good cause.

They clad themselves in iron armour and, after telling Skeppy of their plan (hoping he would tell BadBoyHalo later, after they’ve already left so that he couldn’t complain and force them to stay,) the two set off towards a small cave entrance they had dug out ages ago. While George hadn’t been in the mine before, Sapnap was an expert at guiding them through the maze-like area into the deep underground.

It took what George assumed was a couple of hours before they reached a dead-end, signaling the end of the descent. Sapnap quickly explained that they had stopped mining for awhile while they were exploring and focusing on the farm, but that the cave was already close to diamond-level so all they’d have to do is dig around and try to listen for sources of lava hidden behind walls. 

The experience was very lack-luster in George’s opinion. While he was grateful for the sources of light deterring mob spawning, he was quite bored of mining cobblestone for hours on end. After awhile Sapnap’s shout echoed down one of the long straight paths that he had created. Bingo. Sapnap excitedly ran to George, holding out a small handful of three diamonds. The two giggled like school girls, happy to feel as if they’ve accomplished something without needing Dream.

Immediately Sapnap’s pride took ahold and he puffed out his chest, declaring himself as the king of mining. George just chuckled and shook his head, used to his friend’s antics. The pair giggled to each other and continued to ‘bicker’ before Sapnap suddenly screamed, “Last one to the surface has to talk to Dream!” Immediately he sprinted off while George was taking a moment to digest what was said.

“Hey!” George started up after his friend, though he knew it was hopeless. Sapnap had a massive lead. Still, he attempted to catch up just to appease his friend’s humourous side. The pair stopped at the entrance, out of breath and grinning to each other. Sapnap pumped his fists into the air in triumph. George just rolled his eyes.

The duo laughed and jested to each other as they approached the house, but immediately stopped once they saw what laid in their path. Immediately Sapnap sheepishly took to hiding behind George, who nervously laughed and waved towards the fuming beast that stood in their past. It did not seem satisfied.

“GEORGE! SAPNAP!” The piercing tone commanded absolute attention. The disappointment and worry that hide under the next few words made the pair shrivel further into each other as Dream continued, “What were you thinking?”

Sapnap, feeling as if his pride was being challenge quickly began to argue back, “Dude chill, it was literally just a mining expedition. It saved time and was pretty damn safe. You’re overreacting.”

George awkwardly watched the engagement as Dream’s posture began to shift from one of anger and frustration to one of aggravation and discontent. Sapnap glared out at their companion from behind George’s soldier, fully prepared to abandon his friend to the angry masked man if needed. Dream huffed before drawing out a long sigh. 

“I would just prefer you tell me before just _leaving_.” The sharp snap in his words wilted the pair even further as Dream turned around and strutted into the house, slamming the door to signal that he didn’t care if they followed or not (though they both knew he would become even more upset if they didn’t follow.)

Upon entering the house, they found Dream leisurely twiddling with a few miniature blocks of obsidian (a sign that they were technically in his inventory) near the crafting table. Sapnap and George whispered to each other, trying to determine who would have to approach their upset friend. Finally George sighed and walked over. The masked yellow man turned his head towards the movement yet gave no other indication of care. George coughed and offered a meager “hey Dream” as he shyly glanced to the nearby floorboards. Sapnap made sure to leave in order to avoid further confrontation.

Dream threw the obsidian out towards George, who just glanced at hit. He rolled his eyes. His friend was really stubborn when he wanted to be, and it eventually ended up with them all being in a sour mood. George figured he was meant to craft the enchantment table that had been planned earlier. Placing the obsidian and few diamonds Sapnap had given him he formed the proper recipe and watched as the small figures collided and warped into the desired result.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Enchanter]

He grinned at his friend, who’s mask only stoically stared back. It was kind of unnerving. Figuring his friend was going to be ‘salty’ for the rest of the day, George snapped a quick “here” as he threw the item to his friend before walking off towards their shared room. They’d talk more tomorrow.

The morning came quickly and mostly consisted of tense silence that was only broken by Sapnap’s desperate attempt at jokes. Finally succumbing to the gloomy atmosphere, he walked out claiming that he was going to check up on Bad and Skeppy. George immediately felt at a loss. Dream continued to say nothing, pushing George to speak up first. All attempts at conversation were left ignored/with short and unsatisfactory answers. Eventually he stopped trying. His friend would get over it eventually, he just needed time to think.

The pair silently walked to the farm (at this point George was just awkwardly shadowing his friend, unsure on what to do.) He watched as Dream slaughtered a few cows, gathering their leather. The duo then looped around to a small self-made lake infested with sugar cane. George finally understood the goal. Books. He watched, feeling slightly useless, as Dream cut down the weak stalks of the plant before boldly walking back to the house. 

“Sooo, we’re making an enchantment room?” George glanced over at his friend who temporarily stopped in his movements above the crafting table. 

“Obviously,” the word was full of tension, as if its owner was still deciding if talking was appropriate yet or if they still wanted to be upset. Finally Dream sighed, a sign that he was willing to give up on his petty game of annoyance. George looked over expectantly yet with a skeptical tone, not entirely sure on where Dream’s tone was shifting.

“Sorry I’ve been so cold to you guys lately, it’s just,” Dream stumbled with his words for a few moments, as if unsure of how to properly word it, “you guys are my friends. I don’t like the idea of you guys going off on your own into the dangerous world and not coming back when I could have prevented it.”

“Dream, you know me and Sapnap aren’t kids, right? We’re grown men!” George laughed at his own joke, knowing full well that none of them acted their age. Though he couldn’t see it, he was just Dream was grinning too.

“I know, I know. But still, you guys could have told me yourselves before leaving. I would have put my obsidian adventure on hold and helped you guys instead.”

“It was just mining Dream, it’s not like we were going into the Nether or something.”

At that Dream finally laughed (though it wasn’t yet his iconic wheeze.) “Yeah I guess you're right.” At that, he handed George some bookshelves that he had created and guided them towards a new room that had been carved a few days before the exhibition (though neither George nor Sapnap were sure why, it seemed as though it was intended to be the enchantment room.)

“Wow, making me do all the work? You’re so lazy Dream,” George giggled while Dream continued to give out short bursts of laughter. A weak punch to his shoulder signified that the pair were no longer on bad terms.

“Well, the game can be completed in two ways, and one of those ways is to collect achievements. Since you’ve seemed to become an achievement magnet and have amassed a pretty decent collection of them, it’s probably best that we make you collect as many as possible.”

“Wait...is that why you’ve been making me do all this? You realize that there’s a lot of dangerous and weird ones.”

Dream grimanced, uncertainty clear in his stance and voice as he nervously waved it off. He really worried about his friends, even though they were vital in completing this train-wreck of a death game. Finally he spoke, his tone giving off no indication as to his final emotion, “Well, yeah. Of course I would prefer doing it myself, but resources are limited and trying to get all of us to the same achievement level would put us in more danger than preferred. At this point it’s just easier if we let you gather the achievements. Of course if we run into any that are too dangerous/hard, I could always go and slay the dragon.” He tacked in a short laugh at the end, though he knew that killing the dragon was going to be a herculean feat, even for him.

George dropped the conversation there, choosing instead to focus on his task. It didn’t take long to put them all into place (though he had to be careful not to misplace, not wanting to break one and only have books be returned.) His eyes kept wandering towards Dream, who leaned against the entrance and watched in what seemed to be contemplation. Upon noticing the glances, Dream offered a cocky wave, which made George return with the iconic sticking-the-tongue-out move. The pair chuckled as they finished up.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Librarian]

George proudly turned around and was faced with two thumbs-up from his dull-yellow friend. Grinning, he walked back out and watched as Dream turned his attention to other busy-work task. Soon, Sapnap returned carrying a simple rose which he dramatically offered to Dream in order to ‘appease the RNG gods’ and ‘be forgiven for past sins not committed.’ They all laughed at the theatre-like performance and wording, giving each other small and playful shoves as they wandered around the house. 

Sure, there was a lot more to be done. Sure, everything wanted to kill them. Sure, they were very much a dysfunctional family. Yet still there they were, all alive and making _progress_. George grinned at the notion. He watched Dream as he playfully began to tussle with Sapnap, each exchanging fake flirting-words, a sign of strong friendship. George sighed, craving the same attention yet content to just watch the scene. His friends were truly something else.

  
  
  



	14. Into the Nether

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope is like a hot candle's flame. You seek it in the winter, yet feel demotivated if it's out of sight, fearing it has blown out. Only those who pursue Hope through the freezing fog despite not knowing if the flame is high or neigh are those who are blessed with warmth in the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “omg spooky portal is blue” moment. College stuff is super stressful and deadlines suck. I just want to be accepted :sob:. Me: Has been watching helluva lot of Skephalo content. Also me: I can totally still write DreamNotFound :eyes:. Ain’t working too well chief B). Hopefully I can still capture their essence somewhat. Hopefully. Chemistry still ain't doing too well but I'm doing what I can to write on the side! Totally didn't just spend 6 hours yesterday playing the Witcher III: Wild Hunt instead-. I have good time management :D.
> 
> Anyways I hope ya'll enjoy and have a lovely week!

Blue swirls gently floated through the air, disappearing like snowflakes once coming into contact with anything. The entire other-worldly aesthetic of the portal gave pause to the three adventurers, now uncertain about their plans. They turned to each other to discuss their options. Dream immediately petitioned for the other two to stay behind yet the idea was vigorously fought against and brought down. Either they all went together or not at all.

The trio watched the otherworldly glow in silence for awhile before George chuckled in nervousness before trying to boldly step forward, silently praying for his friends to follow. Dream immediately pulled him back and took the lead, opting to be the first one through at the very least. Sapnap linked his arm through George’s and proudly strutted up to the portal as well. It wasn’t long before the nauseating sensation overtook them and dropped them into a world of monsters and fire.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement  [Into the Nether]

The first thing George was greeted with was darkness. A darkness that he was use to from the safety of a computer screen. Rivers of gold (which he interpreted as lava) flowed freely and expansively nearby, providing light to the dull world. And he thought the normal world was pretty bland.

Dream stood to the side, seemingly already at peace with his senses. The placid mask stared out towards the terrain, already calculating their next move. Sapnap immediately began complaining and yelling (something which opted Dream to cover his mouth, still uncertain as to what’s lurking nearby.) The squeals of zombie pigman did nothing to ease the atmosphere.

“Okay, we’re going to stay together and look around. Do  **_not_ ** dig straight up, down, or fall into any holes. We’re going to find a fortress and decide what to do from there,” Dream’s hushed tone only further set in the gloomy atmosphere that the terrain emitted. Sapnap went quiet.

Following the natural layout of the terrain, the trio dug up netherrack in order to build bridges in areas that had no natural crossing. Until they reached the fortress, lava was the true threat. They would be seared to a crisp instantly. It wasn’t long before Sapnap began panting (joining the ranks of George who had been doing so the entire time) and opting to remove his armour. Dream glared at him but said nothing, preferring to continue their journey then uselessly argue. 

Seeing Sapnap fan himself instinctively made George mimic the action, desperate for air circulation in the heated atmosphere. He didn’t comprehend how Dream seemed unfazed. Perhaps he was also panting under the mask. George quickly brushed away the thought, storing it for later investigation. Now wasn’t the time to be distracted.

It didn’t take long for them to find their first horde of zombie pigman. They had caught brief glimpses of them before but were too focused on ensuring their feet remained on the ground rather than take in their surroundings. Ahead of them was a sea of soul sand (something that terrified the three of them as they were unsure if soul sand would only suck at their boots or swallow them whole.) 

The rotted pig flesh draped over a semi-skeletal body was enough to make George wretch. For some reason he didn’t think the smell would be so potent. At the same time, Sapnap began coughing up a lung as well, obviously upset about the odor. Dream temporarily took a step back, but it was assumed that his mask blocked out most of the smell as he quickly recovered. George was jealous.

“God what is that  _ smell _ ?” Sapnap crinkled up his nose in disgust, obviously still trying to rid his mind and nose of the foul sense. Dream glanced over at them, laughing at their suffering. It didn’t take long for the curious pigmen to approach, causing even Dream to gag at the strength of the odor at such close proximity. They prepared for battle, yet were only met with seemingly curious stares (George would more-so describe it as vacant, but there’s only so much a zombie can do for expression.)

Dream quickly held his hand up for the others to lower their weapons. The last thing they needed was to anger the entirety of the zombie pigman population. The curious and rotted corpses inspected the foreign entities but seemed too afraid to actually touch them. Dream motioned to his mouth, mimicking a ‘hush’ motion as he carefully pushed past the pungent group of pigmen. 

Sapnap, who not-so-gracefully removed and retied his headband around his mouth, continued to grimance as he followed their “leader.” George, who had no such items, suffered through the gauntlet of smell with his only protection being a half-failed attempt at hiding under the hem of his shirt collar. The pigmen let them past, curiosity already faded back into indifference.

After awhile the stuffy-heated atmosphere finally got to George. Deciding to let his emotions override his duty, he dug into a part of the wall and blockaded himself in. Immediately he heard Sapnap chuckle while Dream released a heavy sigh. Sapnap mimicked the other’s actions, burying himself in the wall nearby, leaving Dream out on his own.

“C'mon guys, I know it sucks but it can’t kill us. We’ve been looking for ages now, we’re bound to find one soon, right?” Dream’s parental tone made the other two whine even more.

“But Dreeeaaaammm, it’s cooler inside here. Join ussss.” George’s plea was immediately copied by Sapnap, who began religiously chanting “join us” through his enclosure.

Dream sighed before digging into where George was currently hiding. Giving off a friendly shrill scream, George desperately started replacing the netherrack that separated the two. He could hear Sapnap’s muffled laughter.

“Let me in, LET ME INNNN,” Dream maliciously laughed as he continued to mine the blocks that George kept replacing. They kept at it for awhile before George finally succumbed to his failure. He laughed and dug out a small enclave behind him in order to give more room for Dream. The duo packed themselves into the small place, letting silence set in.

It was awhile before Dream spoke up, “You guys are such liars, this is way hotter then it is out there.”

George immediately snorted before retorting, “That’s because you’re in here breathing and stuff. Exhali-”

Dream immediately sprouted out laughter, interrupting George’s scientific speech in exchange for banter. “Wow George, didn’t take you for such a flirt?” His voice carried loud enough to pierce through the wall, causing Sapnap to erupt into laughter as well. George huffed in a flustered manner, giving the masked man an eye roll to symbolize that he wasn’t amused with the jest. This only provoked more wheezing laughter.

After awhile Dream finally calmed down and silence took ahold once again. It wasn’t long before Sapnap began loudly proclaiming profanities and questionable phrases in order to make his friends laugh. It was very effective.

“Jesus christ Sapnap calm down! We’re going to leave you in your hole if you keep it up,” Dream joked, wheezing between each sentence.

“Gowgieeee, ditch your boyfriend and come into my hole. He has to take both of us or none at all!” George immediately started laughing (albeit a bit sheepishly, the term ‘boyfriend’ really sent his body into an overdrive he didn’t know how to deal with,) moving to leave his shared hole in order to amuse Sapnap. Dream tackled George into a hug, preventing any mining action that could occur.

“DREAM! Let go of me, I wanna bother Sapnap now,” George laughed as the other began ruthlessly tickling him. Dream just laughed louder. The pair kept like that before the blocks to the outside opened up to reveal a grinning Sapnap, obviously looking to join in on the fun.

The trio fought playfully for awhile before deciding the best course of action was to continue their uncomfortable travels (totally not just because having three bodies together was producing so much heat they were half convinced they could actually get the ‘burning’ status effect if they weren’t careful.) 

They jumped around (immediately dropping the idea and resorting solely to “bridging” after Sapnap nearly missed a simple jump that would have thrown him into a sea of lava and instant death.) Zombie pigmen would occasional come by, but the trio would quickly move on in order to avoid the pungent smell the corpses emitted. After another hour of whining and heat (just as George felt his legs give out and Sapnap started to half-joke that he was about to just ride Dream’s shoulders,) they saw it. 

Stark black against dull grey made it hard for George to spot at first, but he heard Dream’s excited shout and immediately turned his head towards whatever had caught his attention. It towered higher than he could have ever imagined and spanned so far that it his eyesight couldn’t even see the end. Half of it rested across a boiling lake of lava while the other half seemed to beckon to them, an entrance touching the safety of land. The fortress.


	15. A Terrible Fortress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The universe is naturally cold. What is Hell if not a figment of the universe's darkest secrets?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y’all, I’m still breathing! I know this achievement isn’t really apart of the Bedrock Edition? Are fortresses even a part of Bedrock? Don’t really know, it’s my world so here’s this. Another single chapter in quick succession due to the big event :0. Despite this being a single chapter it lowkey might be on the shorter side just because the next chapter with two achievements are vital to the inside of the fortress, so I have to wait to do all that then. Still, I hope everyone enjoys it and have a lovely day!
> 
> Also I got accepted into my first university of choice and I'm so excited. It's well known for its Journalism program so hopefully the transition to there goes smoothly :D. I start next Fall but might be inactive for awhile on this depending on if I can finish this before I graduate or not (I am currently graduating from my class a semester early and all my writing is done on the school-issued laptop since my personal one broke down awhile ago.) I'll try to update when I can!

The first thing they noticed was the cold. They hadn’t even made it inside yet, instead trekking carefully around the perimeter to ensure nothing would jump out at them. The last thing they needed was a wither skeleton to slice through their meager group. Rounding about the entrance, the trio quickly whispered amongst themselves as to what needed to be done. Dream, still hellbent on being a hero, desperately wanted to go in alone and ensure Sapnap and George stayed safe by piling them in netherrack (a thought so offensive Sapnap immediately scoffed and began arguing back that Dream was being too protective and that he should let them all go.) They made it this far, after all.

In all honesty, George wouldn’t have minded the idea of someone else going in while he waited out here. The cold bricks radiated a feeling of unease and danger, scaring away even the common zombie pigman from venturing too far into its depths. If only that someone else wasn’t Dream. He sighed. Unlike Dream, George’s sense of protectiveness he tended to keep close to himself. Being an extrovert wasn’t his strong suit after all. Yet still, as he watched his friends bicker, he couldn’t help but anxiously play through the scenarios in which Dream would miss a jump while trying to show off or be snuck up on by the skeletal guardians that hid in the dim corridors. Definitely not appealing thoughts.

He sighed. A glance to his side noted that his two comrades were still furiously arguing about what to do. With an annoyed huff, George set out towards the fortress, immediately repelled once he felt the drastic temperature drop. Well his dramatic entrance was ruined. Still, a sharp “GEORGE” from behind signaled that his venture had not gone un-noted. Dream immediately rushed over, followed by a laughing Sapnap. Full of concern, Dream inspected his friend as if he had fallen off a cliff or something. George playful laughed and shoved him away (though a part of him instantly regretted the loss of his friend’s physical attention.)

“What? You guys weren’t going to do anything. We can’t stay here forever.” George smiled, it once more threatening to spill into a few sporadic laughs. Dream just watched him. He assumed that if he could actually see past the smiley mask he would see a death glare being directed towards him. Strong hands gripping at his shoulders still wasn’t enough to deter George’s advance into the frigid interior. 

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [A Terrible Fortress]

Who knew Hell could be so cold? His body desperately craved a return to the surface in order to find the common-ground temperature that it usually experienced. Hellish heat and abyssal colds weren’t his strong suit.

Sapnap immediately tread along, opting to ignore Dream as well, who went rigid before eventually sighing in defeat. The fortress was huge and being protective wasn’t going to get anyone anywhere fast. The team immediately put their armour back on, flinching back at how cold the metal suddenly felt yet much safer then running around the place vulnerably. With boots clacking against the dull stone, they walked for what George would have guessed was an hour before coming across their first intersection. Looming stairs leading to unknown skies mocked them to the left, while their other paths only offered more darkness.

Looking to each other, they contemplated. They hadn’t run into any hostile enemies yet but also didn’t feel like pushing their luck. Sapnap authoritatively started walking towards the staircase, leaving a temporarily-confused Dream and George in his wake. The pair looked to each other before sprinting after Sapnap, yelling his name as they often did. Immediately Sapnap laughed and turned around, complaining that all they ever did was contemplate on the best course of action. Dream huffed, mumbling about dying, before pulling George along.

Yelling out each other’s names probably wasn’t the best course of action, considering they immediately had to jump back down the staircase and make a mad dash around the corner with Sapnap desperately using up netherrack to cover their trail. Charred skeletons looming a good 9 feet above the ground sprinted after them, bones clacking together in an unnatural manner. All of them were screaming. 

Due to the sheer size of their opponents, Sapnap had to form a miniature bunker around himself and his friends to avoid the skeletal figures from simply scaling any walls he tried to build. George was panting. Dream, who immediately had taken to a defensive position, leaned on his sword and glanced over at his friends. They really needed a plan now. Silent and in shock (too rattled to talk amongst themselves) Dream cautiously cut into the stone fortress towards the outside world. Immediately they were faced with a sheer drop into scalding lava, which was bubbling angrily underneath.

Welp, now was as good as time as ever to keep screaming. George shouted out to Dream, despite the lack of immediate danger. It was his instinct, after all. Sapnap groaned and huddled into himself, watching the others. With adrenaline coursing through him his annoyance only grew once he realized they had no easy way out. His body ached to run.

“Here, Sapnap throw me some of those netherrack blocks, we’re going to have to bridge our way out of here,” Dream’s commanding tone left no room for argument. George watched with increasing unease as his friend began to carefully build a bridge to the outside. A thought suddenly occurred to him.

“If wither skeletons are twice as large as us, how big are blazes?” George whispered quietly, not wanting to spook Dream off of his haphazardly-built land. They all exchanged a glance. 

Sapnap nervously chimed in after thinking to himself for a bit, “How do we even hit blazes? Aren’t they literally floating heads surrounded by sticks of fire?” 

Dream stopped in his advancement outwards and began trekking back, adding to the sides to ensure they all had plenty of room to leave. The thoughts his friends were spewing only darkened the mood. They really needed to make progress.

Taking the initiative and opting to ignore his friend’s worried comments, Dream cracked a fake smile hidden under his mask (sometimes he forgot they couldn’t see his facial expression, so he instead resorted into using over-blown body language to get his point across and help liven the mood.) Spreading out his arms as if awaiting a hug, Dream beckoned for his friends to come out of their cave. Sapnap and George looked at each other in concern before venturing out, making sure not to look down. Lava didn’t sounds appealing.

Immediately afterwards Dream began to build a staircase upwards, hoping to transverse the roof and see the blaze spawners easier. It meant less loot, but it also gave them better vision when trying to spot wither skeletons. Making sure not to fall off, Sapnap pursued their green (though George still was convinced he was just a dark shade of yellow) comrade. Heaving a sigh and wondering how he ever ended up in this situation in the first place (seriously, he should have majored in engineering or something just to keep as far away from this stuff as possible) George trailed after his friends. It was going to be a long climb.


	16. Return to Sender + Into Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From fire to ashes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s everyone’s favourite incompentent lesbian back again with another chapter written haphazardly while in the middle of Chemistry and tail-end of Spanish class :D. Been playing a lot of Witcher III:Wild Hunt Complete Edition recently and drawing stuff from it (love Leshens aka, as my friend called them, ‘treeigos’.) Ghast go brrr. Blaze go x-x. 
> 
> Sorry for being so late on this update. Lowkey this chapter was a lot harder to write because I wanted to get so much done but I’m a wordy bastard child that rambles too much, so there might be some weird transitions in general for this chapter. Not to mention that breaks are coming up and I need to finish some homework while juggling relationship situations (I’m too gay for this planet, send help.) 
> 
> Anyways, I hope all of you have a wonderful day :D!

An explosion. The poorly-made netherrack shield that protected them all from the impact gracefully exploded, leaving them vulnerable once more. Sapnap immediately jumped up to repair it while Dream notched another arrow. 

“STOP FUCKING MISSING,” Sapnap’s screech targetted Dream as another ghastly inhale sounded from above. They were currently being harassed by two ghasts which had set their sights on the trio not long ago. The ghoulish figures floated through the skies, similar to albino krakens that shot fireballs and constantly sounded as if they were out of breath. As Dream missed yet another shot (the fleshy squids were surprisingly agile considering their size, though he’s sure the distance didn’t help either,) George took it upon himself to start trying to knock the figures out of the sky. 

He glanced around the barrier and immediately screamed as he saw a flaming ball skyrocketing towards their shelter. Another explosion. Sapnap coughed before working on repairing it once more. He was running out of netherrack fast. The issue with their current foe was a multitude of things. For starters, they flew. On top of that they also shot explosives that only cobblestone and obsidian could hope to deter. Three, they were fucking  _ fast _ and smart. They always kept their distance before quickly closing in to shoot a fireball and retreating once more. It was almost impossible to get a shot off without risking blowing up yourself.

George shakily notched an arrow himself, watching as Dream continued to unleash a volley towards the albino menances. A shrill banshee-like scream penetrated the Nether, a sign that at least one of Dream’s arrows had hit their mark. Now there was one left. George cautiously peaked around again, this time struggling to aim his bow. Dream must have noticed considering he immediately let out a “GEORGE” before bounding over to him. This caused George to jump, letting his arrow fly.

A sharp inhale. Then more fire. The arrow had embedded itself into the netherrack walls that lingered nearby, safely protecting their harasser. George, beyond annoyed, pushed Dream away and began working on notching another arrow. He heard Dream sigh behind him and felt as his friend tensed up before another arrow flew over his head. This was a lot harder than they thought. George, now feeling the pressure of Dream’s powerful stance behind him, took a deep breath. He could do this. A small yet nagging thought in his mind was desperately hoping for his friend’s praise but it was quickly overshadowed by the instinctive fear of “get the danger the hell away from me.” 

A whishing sound cut through the air. George immediately fell back into Dream as he stumbled to hide once more, afraid of another fireball turning him into nothing but a pair of charred goggles. A scream. The explosion had rocked their little fortress so badly that Sapnap instinctively jumped back and narrowly avoided a fate of being trapped under his own netherrack. George let out a shaky breath. This wasn’t going to work.

He put his bow away. No sense in wasting more arrows. Sapnap immediately began berating the two of them, desperately rambling off insults as a way to relieve his stress. Dream responded with insults of his own, relying on the friendly banter to keep his nerve. George tuned them out and steadily walked out of the safety. Dream and Sapnap were too distracted with themselves to notice George’s not-so-confident walk outside. 

A sharp inhale from a scratchy throat signalled another fireball. This time George was able to watch as the projectile shot towards him much faster then he would have imagined. He breathed out, suddenly unsure as to what bout confidence dragged him into this situation and desperately willing it to return, as he watched the flaming orb grow larger with each second. He swung. Then a scream. Dream and Sapnap quickly looked over to where George was the moment they heard the unholy sound, realizing what he had done. The wraith howled in agony as it plummeted into the eternal fire below.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement  [Return to Sender]

Dream rushed out and cradled George while yelling all the while. George, who was still shocked from the impact of the small meteor onto his sword, was stunned and unable to speak. Sapnap rushed over, quickly blocking them into a small cube to prevent anything from sneaking up on them. They sat there for awhile until George finally regained the feeling in his limbs to move again.

“Wow. Never doing that again,” George smiled slightly, hoping his comedic outtake would ease the tension he felt in the atmosphere as his friends stared at him. 

“GEORGE. WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? YOU SHOULD HAVE TOLD US BEFOREHAND, I WOULD HAVE WENT OUT AND DID THAT IF I KNEW WHAT YOU WERE GOING TO DO,” Dream practically shouted, his voice echoing in their small chamber. George and Sapnap both flinched back before Sapnap replied in a more calm manner.

“Yeah dude, that was super dangerous. Look at yourself. Your arms are sweltering. If it wasn’t such a pain in the ass to get up here then you could bet your glasses,” he pointed to George’s oversized goggles, which were attached to his minecraft avatar, “we would be dragging you right out of this place.”

George huffed and struggled to move. His arms did feel as if they were bubbling in a cauldron but he wasn’t going to focus on that fact yet. This is the closest they’ve been to blazes and he couldn’t wait to get what they needed, leave, and never come back. A glance down at his hotbar (something he learned to simple ignore) showcased that his hearts were capped at a simple 6/10. Well that was slightly problematic. 

Deciding not to inform his friends of his current predicament (the last thing he needed was Dream treating him like a child, even if he did relish in the attention,) George stood up shakily. He grinned in a “oh God what am I doing” sort of way, something that did nothing to ease his friend’s worry, before giving them an awkward thumbs-up. He cautiously broke away at their netherrack barrier and sighed in relief as he watched Sapnap join him. Dream watched in silence, probably contemplating.

Once freed they took in their surroundings. Luckily Sapnap and Dream had been able to spot any wither skeletons from a distance (they still blended in quite well with the rest of the environment for George,) which allowed them to avoid any unwanted confrontation. No mobs. Yet.

The squad continued their long walk through the fortress. They hoped to find the spawners soon, as their food source was becoming more scarce by the minute. And Sapnap had thought they overprepared. George laughed at the thought. He was currently sandwiched between his friends, with Sapnap to his left and slightly ahead while Dream tailed a bit behind on his right. His comical side took over as he grinned deviously at his allies.

“Sheesh guys, didn’t know I was such a high-class prisoner. Escorted by the infamous Dream and Sapnap, whatever shall I do?” Sapnap immediately spun around and began walking backwards, laughter in his eyes as he heard George’s comment.

“Well George, we can’t let the ghast get all that cake,” he began laughing as George flushed, pushing away from his friends and overtaking Sapnap in the lead. He could hear Dream chuckling as well. Laughter fought its way through his stomach, threatening to pour out of his mouth if he so much as dared to respond. So instead George simply smiled and took it in stride, not ready for another ‘feud’ just yet.

It wasn’t long before the unmistakable sound of choked breathing filled their ears. Dream immediately went rigged before crouching down and putting a finger up to his mask, signaling for the others to be quiet. They obeyed. Dream ran ahead, leaving Sapnap and George behind to wait. They watched their friend sprint a few steps forward before backpedaling, apparently catching sight of something in the distance.

“Alright guys, I think I see the blaze spawner. If we go forward then we’re bound to drop down into it. Sapnap and I will go and drop down before barricading the surroundings to ensure no blazes fly off. If one spawns, you need to run around the corner inside the fortress and pray no wither skeletons are lurking nearby.” Dream sounded confident in his orders and Sapnap immediately shook his head in agreement.

“Wait, what about me?” George said, though he was swiftly ignored as the other two dove headfirst into the next task in order to block off as much as possible before any spawned. George, not sure on what to do but also afraid of being left behind, began to dig downwards into the portion of the fortress that apparently linked up to the spawners. He landed with a thud into the hallway, right as he heard Dream and Sapnap sprint past him. One tugged him with, dragging him around the corner. A hiss. 

Fire whizzed through the corridor they were just in, leaving behind a trail of smoke and the promise of a burning demise. George’s eyes widened at the sight. This was going to be difficult. Dream immediately began wheezing in laughter (something George had learned was a reaction to fear) and directing his friends on what to do next.

“Okay so like, those things are fucking  _ massive  _ first of all,” he choked out, nervous laughter exploding from within him. Sapnap began chuckling as well in response. Soon George was also infected with a small giggling fit, nerves attacking him from all angles with Dream’s wheeze leading them on.

“Second of all,” he gasped for air, “the only solid part of them is a floating head surrounded in literal fire pillars. I don’t think the shields I brought are going to be very effective against anything besides their fireballs.”

Sapnap and George looked at each other questioningly before Dream tossed them each a shield. They immediately put it on as Dream cautiously poked his head around the corner. Full of curiosity, George followed suit (of course with Sapnap right behind.) The blazes were just as Dream had originally described. Hellish beasts made of nightmare and fire. So much fire. Three hulking beasts floated without order around a massive iron cage (which George assumed was the spawner.) They all looked at each other before charging in (with Sapnap shrieking off a less-than-manly battle cry.)

They quickly found a rhythm to what they were doing. Sapnap and George would grab the attention of the beasts while Dream snuck up from behind to quickly chop them in half. It wasn’t long before George’s arm grew extremely sore from having to block fireballs off and on (he had learned quickly that dodging is much more preferred yet sometimes blocking was the only option available.) He didn’t know if it was due to fatigue or if it was just because the blazes were getting smarter, but it wasn’t long before George turned around only to find himself face-to-face with one of the hellish firespawn.

He immediately screamed and lunged to the side as a fireball decimated the area he stood moments before. As his ears rung out in pain, he could barely make out Dream’s shout and turned his head to the sound. Sapnap was desperately trying to block and dodge three blazes surrounding him from every angle, while Dream was fighting with one that had separated itself from the rest a short time ago. Both were looking over worriedly at him before Dream shouted again and pointed towards the one focused on George. He raised his arm and braced for the impact.

Pain. His arm throbbed as the shield disintegrated from the force of the impact left by the fireball. He needed to move. Gritting his teeth he lunged forward and pulled out his sword. A burst of adrenaline granted him the ability to swing his sword without decimating the rest of his soul. It took multiple swings (and several instances where he felt fire itself sear past his fragile flesh, giving him quite a few scares) before he finally landed a hit. He watched as his sword cleaved through the beast’s head and it transformed into ashes and a singular glowing rod.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement  [Into Fire]

“WE GOT ENOUGH, RUN BOYS!” Sapnap shouted. Dream and George didn’t need to be told twice. The trio bolted through the corridors, only stopping to pillar up back onto the roof. There was no way they were risking being trapped with another skeleton in these hallways. Sprinting through the nether became an entirely different ballgame once they left the chilled air of the fortress. Being thrust back into the sulfuric atmosphere was another shock that none of them were wholly prepared for. 

“Let’s just...walk back,” Dream chuckled slightly, not nearly as disoriented as Sapnap and George were. After a collective agreement the trio retraced their steps (George was going to lie in bed for weeks after this,) without coming into much conflict. There were a few times Sapnap would shout upon hearing a distant ghast’s deathly moan. It wasn’t long before they were once more faced with the otherworldly portal, promising safety and sanctuary. 

Upon reaching the other side, Dream strode towards the house Bad and Skeppy resided in (probably to tell them of their successful return.) Sapnap immediately faceplanted into the dirt and refused to move. George, looking longingly at the house that had the comfort of a soft bed, begrudgingly dragged his uncooperative feet towards the home. He only made it to the door before he collapsed and decided that leaning against the wall would be a much better option then finishing his journey. The gods knew he was tired.


	17. Delicious Fish + Local Brewery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> HIATUS NOTE:  
> Hey guys, so recently my upload schedule has been very sporadic and seems to get longer with each week that goes by. I’ve decided that I’m going to pause and work on writing the next few chapters before resuming this story so that it’ll have a more consistent update time (currently I’m drowning in assignments and college scholarships/FAFSA work-. Not to mention self-care.) Hopefully I won’t die off for too long but who knows at the state of the world? I’ll have to really grind it out if I want to finish before the end of the semester (all my work is on my school laptop and I’m graduating early, so if it’s not finished by then, expect another long hiatus :D.)
> 
> Sorry everyone who looks forward to frequent updates. I'm bad at managing time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you saw me accidently post chapter 16 as 17 no you didn’t you’re hallucinating-. I was having a bad day D:. Anyways, I’m very bad with romance apparently considering I’ve had trouble focusing on it lately but hopefully I’ll get back around to the fluffy things. Gotta go through hell and back first amiright-. 
> 
> I’ve noticed some people question the choice of getting a bunch of achievements so I’ll put a thing here that might help alleviate some confusion: The achievements are mostly to keep me on track and to have fun with the story. I can still very much decide to just have them beat the Ender Dragon (or die trying :D) but right now I just want to write a long story that some people may or may not enjoy. Also there have been some rules to the achievement thing (i.e. all achievements only obtainable after the dragon is beat is deemed void and don’t count. I might forget some achievements that they could unintentionally do in which case please don’t murder me-.) Again, first public writing. I’m new and trying my best :(. Nevertheless, have a wonderful day everyone!

A week flew by without much movement. George, content to lay in bed for the rest of eternity, watched as his friends slowly became more active. Of course Dream was the first to ‘recover’ (something George was still skeptical on, considering how the other limped and tensed up at each step.) Sapnap got up next, though with much less activity than Dream had. George knew he needed to get up and around soon. Progress waited for no man.

As he stood, he immediately let out a less-than-manly shriek as something flew past his head. Turning his head to where the foreign object originated from, he realized there was a commotion in the designated “kitchen” (which was really just a small room used to store all their excess food.) 

“DREAM,” Sapnap’s shrill cry pierced through the commotion. George looked on as Dream, who was laughing manically, continued to chuck pork chops at his friend. Looking up from his cowered position, Sapnap locked eyes with George before immediately throwing him under the bus.

“GEORGE!” The shout in mixture with Sapnap’s pointing finger stopped Dream’s onslaught as he temporarily paused to look over. George froze. Then he ran. He could hear Dream’s scratched (though slightly cute) voice call out his name as footsteps pounded behind him. He screamed. Sapnap’s laugh faded into the distance as George burst through the door, legs already burning from being forced into exercise so soon, and ran towards Bad’s house. He heard Dream fall behind a bit (though he was certain this was intentional, Dream was much more athletic than George ever was or will be, and he always liked to tease out a long chase.)

George immediately pounded on the birch door, cursing as he heard Dream slow to a menacing trot. It wasn’t long before a groggy Bad opened the door. 

“Hey Georg-?” Bad yelped in sleepy confusion as George dove inside and slammed the door behind him. “What the muffins? George what’s going on?” Concern laced the dark hooded figure, overtaking the sleep that had previously inflicted the other. George, feeling slightly sheepish and embarrassed, simple muttered out an apology before tensing as he heard Dream laugh from outside.

“DREAM GO AWAY,” George shouted out, wincing at the way that Bad cringed from the loud sound. He really didn’t know what Dream’s intentions were, but he wasn’t going to surrender the ‘game’ that easily. Besides, he’s a sucker for adrenaline. 

“Oh George~,” the mocking tone of his masked friend penetrated the walls of the house like a morning chill. George desperately glanced over at Bad, who looked curious and amused at the situation. He sighed in relief as the dark figure waved George further inside.

“BAD, WHAT’S ALL THAT SOUND,” a booming voice that could easily be mistaken for a struggling teenager’s vocal cords echoed from the room next to them. It wasn’t long before the ruffled-up owner of the voice appeared in his signature diamond hoodie.

“Geppy!” Bad bounced up before remembering the company they had. He glanced back at George and waved his hands in a way to signal ‘look, there’s a person in our house.’ Skeppy glanced over at George before giving a careless wave and turning around again. He paused.

“Uh...Bad..?” The tan man stared into the adjacent room in a way that was confused yet too tired too overly process what was happening.

“Yeah?” 

“Why is Dream crawling through our window with, like, 50 pork chops?” 

George immediately took in a breath and desperately looked around for a way to escape. Upon noticing the other’s discomfort, Skeppy began laughing (shaking off the sleep that had once kept him quieter than usual.) Bad glared at the diamond man in a very non-intimidating manner before ushering George through another room and opening a window.

“Thanks...sorry for disturbing you guys so early,” George said, making sure not to be too loud incase Dream was close enough to hear.

“Don’t worry about it you muffin. It’s nice to see you guys. I swear one of these days I’m going to strangle Skeppy-,” Bad made a choking motion with his hands, causing George to laugh. He knew his friend was just saying it to relieve some stress (he still didn’t understand how anyone would willingly spend more than 5 minutes with Skeppy) and didn’t really mean any ill will. Making a mental note to visit Bad more often, George leapt to the outside world and sprinted off once more. 

He dashed into the forest line and threw himself over debris that littered about everywhere. The sound of a stream was only slightly audible outside of his desperate crashing through the trees. A mocking voice echoed through the place, making it hard to pinpoint exactly where his friend was, though his mind convinced him that Dream simply had to be right behind him. He ran harder. Even though he knew it was futile, Dream couldn’t be tricked or outran, George still sprang into the small river nearby. 

He dove under the surface of the calm water, taking a moment to relax. Perhaps Dream would somehow overlook him. With legs feeling as if they were on fire, George lingered near the bottom of the river in order to grant them some rest. His breath could last a minute or two, he assumed. A soft plunk sounded nearby. He forced his eyes to open. Bubbles swirled around a foreign object as it sank to the bottom mere feet away from where he was floating.

Looking up yielded him with an extremely blurred mixture of colour, confusing his senses. Still, he knew someone was up there. That the someone was probably Dream. He let out a small sigh, watching as the bubbles rose to the top tried assaulting the being above in pathetic explosions. Using his arms, he made sure that his legs wouldn’t need to be used much as he half-swam half-crawled back onto the bank.

As he gasped for breath, he raised his hands in mock surrender. His masked friend showed no visible signs of reaction to the gesture, but George could feel the content radiating from within as his friend kneeled over in wheezing laughter. George groaned. Maybe one day he’ll win. 

“What the hell is wrong with you Dream,” George said in a tone that offered little to no true malice. His friend chuckled in reply.

“You should have seen your _face_ , it was _priceless_.”

“Yeah, yeah, very funny. Now my legs are dead. Are you going to revive my legs?” George whined, opting to lay on his back and stare at the sky. 

“They wouldn’t be dead if you hadn’t ran from me,” his masked friend wheezed. George huffed, knowing he wasn’t going to get anywhere in this petty debate. Instead his mind wandered a bit as he watched his friend struggle to breathe with laughter.

“Are you ever going to take off that stupid mask?” 

His friend’s wheeze faltered for a moment before George realized he had asked the question aloud. The pursuing silence made George tense in anticipation. He offered a weak chuckle in attempt to dissipate the thick air. Dream cleared his throat and returned to his cheery mood (though George could tell he was slightly shaken by the lack of vibrancy in his voice) as he changed the subject.

“So anyway, while we’re here, we should totally stock up on some fish and get a few water bottles. Sapnap has been moaning about only eating steak all day,” as Dream talked, light slowly returned to his voice and a calmer demeanor took ahold. 

“Sapnap complains about everything though,” George whined, even as he watched Dream wholeheartedly dive into the water in order to capture some fish. He laughed as the salmon scattered away, trying to evade the yellow menace in the water.

It wasn’t long before Dream re-emerged, coughing up river water and paddling back to shore with a single fish. George howled in laughter as his distraught friend sludged back up to the bank. The soft ‘plop’ of the fish hitting the sand sounded next to George as Dream dived back in once again. The process repeated itself until he had accumulated a total of 5 fish. Without a word he pulled out a few glass bottles and filled them up as well before turning to George.

Despite the mask, George could tell his friend was grinning in pride. Semi-reluctantly George applauded, not willing to give full praise yet still impressed with his friend’s effort and feat. 

“Well, let’s go!” Dream laughed, leaving the fish behind for George to pick up. While George groaned and stuffed the fish into the mystical inventory system, Dream waited impatiently by the tree-line in what was a clear attempt to challenge George to a race home. He sighed. The day never ended when it came to Dream.

Upon arriving home, George was immediately bombarded with an attention-seeking Sapnap while Dream grabbed the fish from George and threw them into one of the many furnaces. The masked man then turned towards the duo who had resorted to wrestling on the floor in something akin to two toddlers fighting in a way that didn’t matter.

A sharp ding caused everyone's heads to turn. Immediately Sapnap pounced up and managed to snag three of the fish before Dream shoved him out of the way. The pair laughed as they fought, falling to the floor. George stood up and strode over to the furnace before grabbing the remaining seafood and began eating it as his friends playfully fought over the other three (not yet realizing George’s crime.)

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Delicious Fish]

While he watched his friends fight, George soon grew bored and wandered over to where Dream had set the glass water bottles down at. With the flourish of an over-exerted parent, George carried the water bottles back to his friends, who had somehow found themselves in a tangle of limbs and fish. Laughter was impossible to withhold.

“You guys are such morons,” He chuckled, holding the water bottles out in order to remind himself of his task. “Where did you put the brewing stand?” George recalled a brief memory while in bed of Dream discussing the plans of making a brewery location so that they could get potions and form an advantage.

Dream struggled to get up while mumbling an “I’ll show you” which held no ground as Sapnap mercilessly fought back to keep Dream down. Sighing in defeat, too tired to resist, Dream grudgingly waved his hand towards the back of the house. George wandered back there, shaking his head at his friend’s shenanigans.

He found a small passageway leading in to a room he had never seen before. Taking this as a sign it was the right place, he walked into the concrete add-on. A brewing stand stood between a few chests, which George assumed had the blaze rods and other ingredients necessary for brewing. He briefly recalled Dream heading back to the Nether to gather some nether wart that grew nearby. Glancing in the chests, George pulled out a handful of ingredients that peaked his interest. Truth be told he had no idea what he wanted to make.

A brief thought crossed his mind of the need to potentially enter the Nether in the future in order to grab more blaze rods. Fire resistance would definitely be useful. He carefully placed three glass bottles into the stand and put a nether wart at the top. He gasped slightly as the contraption whirled to life automatically, heating the ingredient and pouring it down into the bottles. Looking through his ingredients he groaned once he realized they had no magma cream to even make the potion he had in mind.

A ghast tear, a handful of blaze rods (the majority being stored away to make eyes of ender,) and a few random mob drops from Dream and Sapnap’s exploration trips. Strength could always be useful. Opening the inventory system (something one never truly gets use to,) George ground up a blaze rod into what the game deemed ‘blaze powder.’ He carefully poured it into the contraption, watching again as it whirled to life and worked its magic.

It wasn’t long before the water turned a hue of deep gray (what he assumed was red according to what his friends call it.) He thought for a moment but was unable to think of anything else to add or make to it. He wasn’t going to risk wasting a blaze rod by experimenting. Reaching in, he grabbed his concoctions and placed them in a nearby chest.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Local Brewery]

With a huff of pride, he walked out of the room and wandered towards his bed. Instead of being greeted by the sight of safe and comfortable bedsheets, he was met with a pile of pork chops and a cooked fish surrounding his only solitude from the world. A small “what the…” escaped his mouth before he heard the howling laughter of Dream and snickers of Sapnap from around the corner. Shaking his head, George grabbed the food and began tossing it towards the sounds.


	18. Bake Bread + The Haggler

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The rising of bread leads to the rising of more adventures.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not yet my return sadly, as I've had a lot of other things to focus on in life and haven't really stockpiled a lot of chapters for this story just yet. However, in celebration for my other story (the Skephalo fic I alluded to a few times previously, which I wrote instead because I needed a change of pace,) I'll post a chapter here just because its been awhile and I want everyone to know I haven't died (yet-.) And hopefully it will signal a revival soon.  
> In other news, we did get a new puppy over the Winter Break and that's also been siphoning a lot of time and effort, but I love them more then I love fanfiction so we'll see how often I get to write. Gotta try not to put myself in a time-crunch haha.  
> As always, I hope you all are having a wonderful day.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [Bake Bread]

“SAPNAP I TOLD YOU TO STOP,” George screamed out as Sapnap continued to relentlessly break and replace the crafting table. He had barely managed to craft a single loaf of bread before the menace came to harass him for attention.

“No! It’s funny,” Sapnap gave his signature chuckle, a sound which was akin to a teenage gremlin pulling a ‘prank’ on the teacher. George just sighed and shook his head. It was almost impossible to get Sapnap to back off of something once he had his sights set. After a few more infuriating attempts, George stormed away. To his dismay Sapnap simply followed him.

“Aw c’mon George, it was funny! You can make your stupid bread now,” the other nonchalantly exclaimed, seeming to not really care. Still George sighed and turned back around.

“You promise?” He eyed the other skeptically.

“Have I ever lied to you George?” Sapnap’s innocent charade wreaked of foul intent. George snorted. “Dude, seriously? Name one time-,” as Sapnap started to go off about his credibility with George only semi-listening, Dream made his proud entrance. The pair immediately stopped their bickering to look. They started snickering before bellowing into full-blown laughter.

“Dream, what _is_ that?” George barely managed to get out the words between his fits of laughter.

“Yeah, what the hell man?” Sapnap’s inner goblin took ahold as he rolled on the floor with laughter.

Standing in the doorway was Dream, proudly (though now somewhat sheepishly) wearing leather armour with a collage of horrifically painted logos on it. From Nike® to Supreme®, no logo was spared in his strange attire.

“Well, I discovered that if you really wanted to, you could just make dyes and then paint leather armour yourself. So obviously I took this opportunity to get all the popular name brands from the store,” he laughed along with his friends as he stepped down from his heroic pose.

“But _why_ , you know those have absolutely no value here right?” As George was questioning Dream’s decision, Sapnap perked up and began speaking at the same time.

“Dude, that’s such a great idea, why didn’t I think of that?” They watched as Sapnap darted out of the room to hunt down where Dream found his dyes and armour. George sighed as Dream chuckled, happy with his friend’s antics.

“Because it’s fun!” Dream stated, turning his attention back to George. “This world is pretty fucked up, there’s nothing wrong with trying to improve morale every once in awhile.” George rolled his eyes at Dream’s explanation but didn’t say anything. It was pretty funny after all.

“So…do you think anyone will sponsor me like this?” Dream deviously glanced at George, a hidden smirk lingering behind the smiling mask. George gave a short laugh in response. They lingered like that for a few moments, George sitting up on the floor and watching Dream fiddle with some chests.

He heard a chuckle. Dream turned around to face him and stated, “Dude, Sapnap is literally spamming me in whisper to go and help him find the dye and asking me how to paint and stuff.”

“Well, are you going to help him? Also-” George began but was cut off.

“No,” Dream laughed, “he’ll figure it out on his own.” George gave a soft hum as a reply before letting silence overtake them once more. Growing bored of the passive silence, Dream stood up and began pacing the room. 

“Anyways, I was wondering-,”

“Always a bad thing,” George cut in, laughing as he watched Dream pause for a moment in confusion before the masked fiend resumed with a chuckle himself.

“Shut up,” though the tone held no grounds for malice, it did harbor a more slightly serious tone, “as I was saying, you know how you mentioned villagers on your way to reach us? We could really use their trading system, especially if we want to get to the end and beat it as soon as possible.” 

George hesitated a moment before giving a soft ‘oh’ as he remembered the journey. A part of his mind must have blocked it off and replaced it with more recent memories. The Nether particularly held a large hold on his mind. Shaking it off, his mind wandered back to the strange villagers.

“Yeah, they did seem more than willing to offer everything they could in order to ensure comfort and safety even though they didn’t know me. Trading probably isn’t an issue,” George stated simply, still thinking.

“Awesome! In the morning me and you will go out and find them again. I already told Sapnap earlier and got him to agree to help out Bad and Skeppy while we were away. I’ll bring a few sticks and stuff to trade as practice so we don’t lose any of our valuables just yet.”

“Okay but why do I have to go?”

Dream looked over at him as if he’d just grown two heads before bursting out into wheezing laughter. “Dude, you’re the only one who knows where it is. I’m not going to scavenge the entire desert to find a village.”

“Oh.” George muttered sheepishly. He guessed it made sense. Still, his mind wandered around frantically as it tried to recall if he remembered the way or not. Hopefully he did.

“Alright, well, rest up. I’ll send Sapnap in to wake you tomorrow.”

“What about you? You can’t stay up all night Dream.”

“Well one can never be fully prepared.”

“ _Dream_.”

“Fine, fine, I’ll go to sleep at a decent time tonight, I promise,” he continued once he noticed George was still glaring at him, “I swear on Bad’s mom or something.”

George paused his skeptical look in order to provide a laugh due to the unexpected phrase. Taking this as cue to escape, Dream slithered back out of the room. George sighed. The feeling of absence immediately filled the room. Deciding to not dwell on it any longer, George huddled into his bed and tried to get some sleep as he heard Sapnap’s scream in the distance.

George had forgotten just how _annoying_ sand was. Especially when he had to carry an ecstatic Dream with too much energy then a Dream should ever have. Ten minutes into walking through the desert had made Dream antsy, which was always detrimental to those around to witness it. Now George was struggling to give the other a piggy back ride through the scalding environment. 

He finally got off once George threatened to collapse under the weight and heat of the atmosphere, laughing nervously as George heaved and glared up at him. Smoke over the horizon told them they were close to their destination. George didn’t think about the fact that they were heading 90* the wrong direction and that spotting the smoke was a stroke of sheer luck.

Dream offered to rest temporarily before practically dragging George back up and through the sand. It wasn’t long before they faced the village as a midday sun scorched the land. Sandstone structures jutted out around the dunes. George paused. While most main buildings was where he remembered them to be, there seemed to be some new structures. Did villagers construct over time? His mind wasn’t allowed to ponder for long before Dream continued to bring them to the village.

Their arrival didn’t go unnoticed. Soon they found themselves being studied by a horde of villagers, causing both Dream and George to glance at each other cautiously. 

“You’re right, they are kind of weird,” Dream’s mummer caused George to let out a sharp laugh which further made the villager inquisitive. Apparently one of them must have recognized George because they immediately began pointing to him and jumping in excitement. Dream protectively reached over and prevented any from getting to George. The villagers looked confused before chatting with each other in their strange language.

Finally a leader emerged from the group and opened its arms up. Something akin to a smile graced its features as it gazed over the two adventurers as if stumbling across deities. Immediately the villagers rushed back into the house and came out with various goods and emeralds, fully prepared to trade away their possessions in exchange for foreign products. The two adventurers glanced at each other before Dream relaxed his pose slightly and brought out a bundle of sticks. 

The villagers all stood expectantly, each training an eye on the masked man. George watched as Dream approached one and slightly stumbled backwards as if startled. He then looked over to George, chuckled, and returned to his task. His hand moved through the air and George watched in utter amazement as the sticks he was holding simply vanished upon reaching the villager’s head. Proud of his accomplishment, Dream turned towards George and beckoned him over.

“Here dude, try it,” Dream tossed him some sticks. George looked at the wood with great scrutiny before releasing his nerves by laughing. He approached the villager only to jump back suddenly when a trading GUI appeared, scoffing as he heard Dream wheeze behind him.

The villager appeared slightly taken aback by the sharp reaction but still lightly laughed (at least he assumed it was laughter) upon noticing Dream’s amusement. George stood up once more and tried again. The panel appeared. He looked through it, eyes still trying to fully register the experience. Instead of a small panel like their inventory was, this GUI reached all the way from his head to the ground. Most of it was blank space. He carefully pulled his sticks upwards and pressed them into the tiny box near his head (copying Dream as best he could in order to not further embarrass himself.) He kept doing it until he noticed the gleaming green gems lingering out of the corner of his eye.

GeorgeNotFound has just earned the achievement [The Haggler]

He looked over to Dream with a proud expression, watching the villager gratefully examine the sticks out of the corner of his eye. Villagers were really weird. Dream offered him a thumbs-up and George’s heart filled with a warm sense of pride. He loved it when his friend gave him praise. Well, specifically when Dream gave him praise-. But that was perfectly normal, right? Dream was everybody's icon. As he lost himself in a mental struggle of why Dream mattered more than everyone else, his masked comrade spoke up.

“Now...we’re going on an adventure,” Dream grinned mischievously, shattering George’s bubble of euphoria.

“...What?”

  
  



End file.
